Configuring and providing profiles that manage execution of mobile applications

ABSTRACT

Various aspects of the disclosure relate to configuring and providing policies that manage execution of mobile applications. In some embodiments, a user interface may be generated that allows an IT administrator or other operator to set, change and/or add to policy settings. The policy settings can be formatted into a policy file and be made available for download to a mobile device, such as via an application store or to be pushed to the mobile device as part of a data push service. The mobile device, based on the various settings included in the policy file, may perform various actions to enforce the security constraints that are represented by the policy. The various settings that can be included in a policy are numerous and some examples and variations thereof are described in connection with the example embodiments discussed herein.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of and claims priority to: U.S.Non-Provisional patent application Ser. No. 14/039,651, filed Sep. 27,2013, and entitled “CONFIGURING AND PROVIDING PROFILES THAT MANAGEEXECUTION OF MOBILE APPLICATIONS,” which claims priority to U.S.Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/863,194, filed Aug. 7, 2013,and entitled “CONFIGURING AND PROVIDING PROFILES THAT MANAGE EXECUTIONOF MOBILE APPLICATIONS;” U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No.61/713,715, filed Oct. 16, 2012, and entitled “MANAGING DYNAMIC PROFILESAND SETTINGS FOR MOBILE APPLICATIONS;” and U.S. Provisional PatentApplication Ser. No. 61/806,577, filed Mar. 29, 2013, and entitled“SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR ENTERPRISE MOBILITY MANAGEMENT.”

Each of the above-mentioned patent applications is incorporated byreference herein in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

Aspects of the disclosure relate to computer hardware and software. Inparticular, one or more aspects of the disclosure generally relate tocomputer hardware and software for providing an enterprise applicationstore.

Increasingly, corporations and other organizations are providing and/orotherwise enabling their employees and other associates with mobiledevices, such as smart phones, tablet computers, and other mobilecomputing devices. As these devices continue to grow in popularity andprovide an increasing number of functions, many organizations may wishto place certain controls on how these devices can be used, whatresources these devices can access, and how the applications running onthese devices can interact with other resources.

SUMMARY

Aspects of the disclosure provide more efficient, effective, functional,and convenient ways of controlling how mobile devices can be used, whatresources mobile devices can access, and how the applications running onthese devices can interact with other resources. In particular, in oneor more embodiments discussed in greater detail below, an enterpriseapplication store may be implemented that can provide these andfeatures.

Various aspects of the disclosure relate to configuring and providingone or more policies that can be used by a mobile to manage or constrainthe execution of a mobile application (also referred herein as a managedapplication). In particular, some embodiments of this disclosure relateto systems, one or more apparatuses and one or more computing devicesthat are configured to perform various methods for configuring andproviding the policies. For example, one or more computing devices maydisplay a user interface that displays one or more policy settings for amanaged application that is to be made available for download to amobile device. Each of the one or more policy settings may provide aconstraint to be enforced by the mobile device prior to the managedapplication being provided access to at least one resource that isaccessible through an access gateway. The one or more computing devicesmay also receive input via the user interface that modifies the one ormore policy settings, which can result in one or more modified policysettings. The one or more computing devices may further produce a policyfile for the managed application that includes the one or more modifiedpolicy settings and provide the policy file such that the policy isavailable for download to the mobile device. The various settings thatcan be included in a policy are numerous and some examples andvariations thereof are described in connection with the exampleembodiments discussed herein.

These features, along with many others, are discussed in greater detailbelow.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present disclosure is illustrated by way of example and not limitedin the accompanying figures in which like reference numerals indicatesimilar elements and in which:

FIG. 1 depicts an illustrative computer system architecture that may beused in accordance with one or more aspects of the disclosure.

FIG. 2 depicts an illustrative remote-access system architecture thatmay be used in accordance with various aspects of the disclosure.

FIG. 3 depicts an illustrative virtualized (hypervisor) systemarchitecture that may be used in accordance one or more aspects of thedisclosure.

FIG. 4 depicts an illustrative cloud-based system architecture that maybe used in accordance various aspects of the disclosure.

FIG. 5 depicts an illustrative enterprise mobility management systemthat may be used in accordance with one or more aspects of thedisclosure.

FIG. 6 depicts another illustrative enterprise mobility managementsystem that may be used in accordance with various aspects of thedisclosure.

FIG. 7 illustrates an example method for configuring a policy for amanaged application in accordance with one or more aspects of thedisclosure.

FIG. 8 illustrates an example environment in which various policies maybe configured in accordance with one or more aspects described herein.

FIG. 9 illustrates an example method for configuring and providing apolicy that includes a setting to delete data in accordance with variousaspects of the disclosure.

FIG. 10 illustrates an example method for configuring and providing apolicy that includes one or more settings for managing execution of amanaged application in accordance with one or more aspects of thedisclosure.

FIG. 11 illustrates an example method for configuring and providing apolicy that includes one or more settings related to user authenticationand/or user identification in accordance with various aspects describedherein.

FIGS. 12A-12J illustrate example user interfaces that can be used toconfigure one or more policies in accordance with various aspectsdescribed herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In the following description of the various embodiments, reference ismade to the accompanying drawings identified above and which form a parthereof, and in which is shown by way of illustration various embodimentsin which aspects described herein may be practiced. It is to beunderstood that other embodiments may be utilized and structural andfunctional modifications may be made without departing from the scopedescribed herein. Various aspects are capable of other embodiments andof being practiced or being carried out in various different ways.

As a general introduction to the subject matter described in more detailbelow, various aspects of the disclosure relate to configuring andproviding policies that manage execution of mobile applications. In someembodiments, a user interface may be generated that allows an ITadministrator or other operator to set, change and/or add to policysettings. The policy settings can be formatted into a policy file, suchas an Extensible Markup Language file (XML file), and be made availablefor download to a mobile device. The mobile device, based on the varioussettings included in the policy file, may perform various actions toenforce the security constraints that are represented by the policy. Thevarious settings that can be included in a policy are numerous and someexamples and variations thereof are described in connection with theexample embodiments discussed herein.

It is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology used hereinare for the purpose of description and should not be regarded aslimiting. Rather, the phrases and terms used herein are to be giventheir broadest interpretation and meaning. The use of “including” and“comprising” and variations thereof is meant to encompass the itemslisted thereafter and equivalents thereof as well as additional itemsand equivalents thereof. The use of the terms “mounted,” “connected,”“coupled,” “positioned,” “engaged” and similar terms, is meant toinclude both direct and indirect mounting, connecting, coupling,positioning and engaging.

Computing Architecture

Computer software, hardware, and networks may be utilized in a varietyof different system environments, including standalone, networked,remote-access (aka, remote desktop), virtualized, and/or cloud-basedenvironments, among others. FIG. 1 illustrates one example of a systemarchitecture and data processing device that may be used to implementone or more illustrative aspects described herein in a standalone and/ornetworked environment. Various network nodes 103, 105, 107, and 109 maybe interconnected via a wide area network (WAN) 101, such as theInternet. Other networks may also or alternatively be used, includingprivate intranets, corporate networks, LANs, metropolitan area networks(MAN) wireless networks, personal networks (PAN), and the like. Network101 is for illustration purposes and may be replaced with fewer oradditional computer networks. A local area network (LAN) may have one ormore of any known LAN topology and may use one or more of a variety ofdifferent protocols, such as Ethernet. Devices 103, 105, 107, 109 andother devices (not shown) may be connected to one or more of thenetworks via twisted pair wires, coaxial cable, fiber optics, radiowaves or other communication media.

The term “network” as used herein and depicted in the drawings refersnot only to systems in which remote storage devices are coupled togethervia one or more communication paths, but also to stand-alone devicesthat may be coupled, from time to time, to such systems that havestorage capability. Consequently, the term “network” includes not only a“physical network” but also a “content network,” which is comprised ofthe data—attributable to a single entity—which resides across allphysical networks.

The components may include data server 103, web server 105, and clientcomputers 107, 109. Data server 103 provides overall access, control andadministration of databases and control software for performing one ormore illustrative aspects describe herein. Data server 103 may beconnected to web server 105 through which users interact with and obtaindata as requested. Alternatively, data server 103 may act as a webserver itself and be directly connected to the Internet. Data server 103may be connected to web server 105 through the network 101 (e.g., theInternet), via direct or indirect connection, or via some other network.Users may interact with the data server 103 using remote computers 107,109, e.g., using a web browser to connect to the data server 103 via oneor more externally exposed web sites hosted by web server 105. Clientcomputers 107, 109 may be used in concert with data server 103 to accessdata stored therein, or may be used for other purposes. For example,from client device 107 a user may access web server 105 using anInternet browser, as is known in the art, or by executing a softwareapplication that communicates with web server 105 and/or data server 103over a computer network (such as the Internet).

Servers and applications may be combined on the same physical machines,and retain separate virtual or logical addresses, or may reside onseparate physical machines. FIG. 1 illustrates just one example of anetwork architecture that may be used, and those of skill in the artwill appreciate that the specific network architecture and dataprocessing devices used may vary, and are secondary to the functionalitythat they provide, as further described herein. For example, servicesprovided by web server 105 and data server 103 may be combined on asingle server.

Each component 103, 105, 107, 109 may be any type of known computer,server, or data processing device. Data server 103, e.g., may include aprocessor 111 controlling overall operation of the rate server 103. Dataserver 103 may further include RAM 113, ROM 115, network interface 117,input/output interfaces 119 (e.g., keyboard, mouse, display, printer,etc.), and memory 121. I/O 119 may include a variety of interface unitsand drives for reading, writing, displaying, and/or printing data orfiles. Memory 121 may further store operating system software 123 forcontrolling overall operation of the data processing device 103, controllogic 125 for instructing data server 103 to perform aspects describedherein, and other application software 127 providing secondary, support,and/or other functionality which may or might not be used in conjunctionwith aspects described herein. The control logic may also be referred toherein as the data server software 125. Functionality of the data serversoftware may refer to operations or decisions made automatically basedon rules coded into the control logic, made manually by a user providinginput into the system, and/or a combination of automatic processingbased on user input (e.g., queries, data updates, etc.).

Memory 121 may also store data used in performance of one or moreaspects described herein, including a first database 129 and a seconddatabase 131. In some embodiments, the first database may include thesecond database (e.g., as a separate table, report, etc.). That is, theinformation can be stored in a single database, or separated intodifferent logical, virtual, or physical databases, depending on systemdesign. Devices 105, 107, 109 may have similar or different architectureas described with respect to device 103. Those of skill in the art willappreciate that the functionality of data processing device 103 (ordevice 105, 107, 109) as described herein may be spread across multipledata processing devices, for example, to distribute processing loadacross multiple computers, to segregate transactions based on geographiclocation, user access level, quality of service (QoS), etc.

One or more aspects may be embodied in computer-usable or readable dataand/or computer-executable instructions, such as in one or more programmodules, executed by one or more computers or other devices as describedherein. Generally, program modules include routines, programs, objects,components, data structures, etc. that perform particular tasks orimplement particular abstract data types when executed by a processor ina computer or other device. The modules may be written in a source codeprogramming language that is subsequently compiled for execution, or maybe written in a scripting language such as (but not limited to) HTML orXML. The computer executable instructions may be stored on a computerreadable medium such as a nonvolatile storage device. Any suitablecomputer readable storage media may be utilized, including hard disks,CD-ROMs, optical storage devices, magnetic storage devices, and/or anycombination thereof. In addition, various transmission (non-storage)media representing data or events as described herein may be transferredbetween a source and a destination in the form of electromagnetic wavestraveling through signal-conducting media such as metal wires, opticalfibers, and/or wireless transmission media (e.g., air and/or space).Various aspects described herein may be embodied as a method, a dataprocessing system, or a computer program product. Therefore, variousfunctionalities may be embodied in whole or in part in software,firmware and/or hardware or hardware equivalents such as integratedcircuits, field programmable gate arrays (FPGA), and the like.Particular data structures may be used to more effectively implement oneor more aspects described herein, and such data structures arecontemplated within the scope of computer executable instructions andcomputer-usable data described herein.

With further reference to FIG. 2, one or more aspects described hereinmay be implemented in a remote-access environment. FIG. 2 depicts anexample system architecture including a generic computing device 201 inan illustrative computing environment 200 that may be used according toone or more illustrative aspects described herein. Generic computingdevice 201 may be used as a server 206 a in a single-server ormulti-server desktop virtualization system (e.g., a remote access orcloud system) configured to provide virtual machines for client accessdevices. The generic computing device 201 may have a processor 203 forcontrolling overall operation of the server and its associatedcomponents, including random access memory (RAM) 205, read-only memory(ROM) 207, input/output (I/O) module 209, and memory 215.

I/O module 209 may include a mouse, keypad, touch screen, scanner,optical reader, and/or stylus (or other input device(s)) through which auser of generic computing device 201 may provide input, and may alsoinclude one or more of a speaker for providing audio output and a videodisplay device for providing textual, audiovisual, and/or graphicaloutput. Software may be stored within memory 215 and/or other storage toprovide instructions to processor 203 for configuring generic computingdevice 201 into a special purpose computing device in order to performvarious functions as described herein. For example, memory 215 may storesoftware used by the computing device 201, such as an operating system217, application programs 219, and an associated database 221.

Computing device 201 may operate in a networked environment supportingconnections to one or more remote computers, such as terminals 240 (alsoreferred to as client devices). The terminals 240 may be personalcomputers, mobile devices, laptop computers, tablets, or servers thatinclude many or all of the elements described above with respect to thegeneric computing device 103 or 201. The network connections depicted inFIG. 2 include a local area network (LAN) 225 and a wide area network(WAN) 229, but may also include other networks. When used in a LANnetworking environment, computing device 201 may be connected to the LAN225 through a network interface or adapter 223. When used in a WANnetworking environment, computing device 201 may include a modem 227 orother wide area network interface for establishing communications overthe WAN 229, such as computer network 230 (e.g., the Internet). It willbe appreciated that the network connections shown are illustrative andother means of establishing a communications link between the computersmay be used. Computing device 201 and/or terminals 240 may also bemobile terminals (e.g., mobile phones, smartphones, PDAs, notebooks,etc.) including various other components, such as a battery, speaker,and antennas (not shown).

Aspects described herein may also be operational with numerous othergeneral purpose or special purpose computing system environments orconfigurations. Examples of other computing systems, environments,and/or configurations that may be suitable for use with aspectsdescribed herein include, but are not limited to, personal computers,server computers, hand-held or laptop devices, multiprocessor systems,microprocessor-based systems, set top boxes, programmable consumerelectronics, network PCs, minicomputers, mainframe computers,distributed computing environments that include any of the above systemsor devices, and the like.

As shown in FIG. 2, one or more client devices 240 may be incommunication with one or more servers 206 a-206 n (generally referredto herein as “server(s) 206”). In one embodiment, the computingenvironment 200 may include a network appliance installed between theserver(s) 206 and client machine(s) 240. The network appliance maymanage client/server connections, and in some cases can load balanceclient connections amongst a plurality of backend servers 206.

The client machine(s) 240 may in some embodiments be referred to as asingle client machine 240 or a single group of client machines 240,while server(s) 206 may be referred to as a single server 206 or asingle group of servers 206. In one embodiment a single client machine240 communicates with more than one server 206, while in anotherembodiment a single server 206 communicates with more than one clientmachine 240. In yet another embodiment, a single client machine 240communicates with a single server 206.

A client machine 240 can, in some embodiments, be referenced by any oneof the following non-exhaustive terms: client machine(s); client(s);client computer(s); client device(s); client computing device(s); localmachine; remote machine; client node(s); endpoint(s); or endpointnode(s). The server 206, in some embodiments, may be referenced by anyone of the following non-exhaustive terms: server(s), local machine;remote machine; server farm(s), or host computing device(s).

In one embodiment, the client machine 240 may be a virtual machine. Thevirtual machine may be any virtual machine, while in some embodimentsthe virtual machine may be any virtual machine managed by a Type 1 orType 2 hypervisor, for example, a hypervisor developed by CitrixSystems, IBM, VMware, or any other hypervisor. In some aspects, thevirtual machine may be managed by a hypervisor, while in aspects thevirtual machine may be managed by a hypervisor executing on a server 206or a hypervisor executing on a client 240.

Some embodiments include a client device 240 that displays applicationoutput generated by an application remotely executing on a server 206 orother remotely located machine. In these embodiments, the client device240 may execute a virtual machine receiver program or application todisplay the output in an application window, a browser, or other outputwindow. In one example, the application is a desktop, while in otherexamples the application is an application that generates or presents adesktop. A desktop may include a graphical shell providing a userinterface for an instance of an operating system in which local and/orremote applications can be integrated. Applications, as used herein, areprograms that execute after an instance of an operating system (and,optionally, also the desktop) has been loaded.

The server 206, in some embodiments, uses a remote presentation protocolor other program to send data to a thin-client or remote-displayapplication executing on the client to present display output generatedby an application executing on the server 206. The thin-client orremote-display protocol can be any one of the following non-exhaustivelist of protocols: the Independent Computing Architecture (ICA) protocoldeveloped by Citrix Systems, Inc. of Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.; or the RemoteDesktop Protocol (RDP) manufactured by the Microsoft Corporation ofRedmond, Wash.

A remote computing environment may include more than one server 206a-206 n such that the servers 206 a-206 n are logically grouped togetherinto a server farm 206, for example, in a cloud computing environment.The server farm 206 may include servers 206 that are geographicallydispersed while and logically grouped together, or servers 206 that arelocated proximate to each other while logically grouped together.Geographically dispersed servers 206 a-206 n within a server farm 206can, in some embodiments, communicate using a WAN (wide), MAN(metropolitan), or LAN (local), where different geographic regions canbe characterized as: different continents; different regions of acontinent; different countries; different states; different cities;different campuses; different rooms; or any combination of the precedinggeographical locations. In some embodiments the server farm 206 may beadministered as a single entity, while in other embodiments the serverfarm 206 can include multiple server farms.

In some embodiments, a server farm may include servers 206 that executea substantially similar type of operating system platform (e.g.,WINDOWS, UNIX, LINUX, iOS, ANDROID, SYMBIAN, etc.) In other embodiments,server farm 206 may include a first group of one or more servers thatexecute a first type of operating system platform, and a second group ofone or more servers that execute a second type of operating systemplatform.

Server 206 may be configured as any type of server, as needed, e.g., afile server, an application server, a web server, a proxy server, anappliance, a network appliance, a gateway, an application gateway, agateway server, a virtualization server, a deployment server, a SSL VPNserver, a firewall, a web server, an application server or as a masterapplication server, a server executing an active directory, or a serverexecuting an application acceleration program that provides firewallfunctionality, application functionality, or load balancingfunctionality. Other server types may also be used.

Some embodiments include a first server 106 a that receives requestsfrom a client machine 240, forwards the request to a second server 106b, and responds to the request generated by the client machine 240 witha response from the second server 106 b. First server 106 a may acquirean enumeration of applications available to the client machine 240 andwell as address information associated with an application server 206hosting an application identified within the enumeration ofapplications. First server 106 a can then present a response to theclient's request using a web interface, and communicate directly withthe client 240 to provide the client 240 with access to an identifiedapplication. One or more clients 240 and/or one or more servers 206 maytransmit data over network 230, e.g., network 101.

FIG. 2 shows a high-level architecture of an illustrative desktopvirtualization system. As shown, the desktop virtualization system maybe single-server or multi-server system, or cloud system, including atleast one virtualization server 206 configured to provide virtualdesktops and/or virtual applications to one or more client accessdevices 240. As used herein, a desktop refers to a graphical environmentor space in which one or more applications may be hosted and/orexecuted. A desktop may include a graphical shell providing a userinterface for an instance of an operating system in which local and/orremote applications can be integrated. Applications may include programsthat execute after an instance of an operating system (and, optionally,also the desktop) has been loaded. Each instance of the operating systemmay be physical (e.g., one operating system per device) or virtual(e.g., many instances of an OS running on a single device). Eachapplication may be executed on a local device, or executed on a remotelylocated device (e.g., remoted).

With further reference to FIG. 3, a computer device 301 may beconfigured as a virtualization server in a virtualization environment,for example, a single-server, multi-server, or cloud computingenvironment. Virtualization server 301 illustrated in FIG. 3 can bedeployed as and/or implemented by one or more embodiments of the server206 illustrated in FIG. 2 or by other known computing devices. Includedin virtualization server 301 is a hardware layer that can include one ormore physical disks 304, one or more physical devices 306, one or morephysical processors 308 and one or more physical memories 316. In someembodiments, firmware 312 can be stored within a memory element in thephysical memory 316 and can be executed by one or more of the physicalprocessors 308. Virtualization server 301 may further include anoperating system 314 that may be stored in a memory element in thephysical memory 316 and executed by one or more of the physicalprocessors 308. Still further, a hypervisor 302 may be stored in amemory element in the physical memory 316 and can be executed by one ormore of the physical processors 308.

Executing on one or more of the physical processors 308 may be one ormore virtual machines 332A-C (generally 332). Each virtual machine 332may have a virtual disk 326A-C and a virtual processor 328A-C. In someembodiments, a first virtual machine 332A may execute, using a virtualprocessor 328A, a control program 320 that includes a tools stack 324.Control program 320 may be referred to as a control virtual machine,Dom0, Domain 0, or other virtual machine used for system administrationand/or control. In some embodiments, one or more virtual machines 332B-Ccan execute, using a virtual processor 328B-C, a guest operating system330A-B.

Virtualization server 301 may include a hardware layer 310 with one ormore pieces of hardware that communicate with the virtualization server301. In some embodiments, the hardware layer 310 can include one or morephysical disks 304, one or more physical devices 306, one or morephysical processors 308, and one or more memory 216. Physical components304, 306, 308, and 316 may include, for example, any of the componentsdescribed above. Physical devices 306 may include, for example, anetwork interface card, a video card, a keyboard, a mouse, an inputdevice, a monitor, a display device, speakers, an optical drive, astorage device, a universal serial bus connection, a printer, a scanner,a network element (e.g., router, firewall, network address translator,load balancer, virtual private network (VPN) gateway, Dynamic HostConfiguration Protocol (DHCP) router, etc.), or any device connected toor communicating with virtualization server 301. Physical memory 316 inthe hardware layer 310 may include any type of memory. Physical memory316 may store data, and in some embodiments may store one or moreprograms, or set of executable instructions. FIG. 3 illustrates anembodiment where firmware 312 is stored within the physical memory 316of virtualization server 301. Programs or executable instructions storedin the physical memory 316 can be executed by the one or more processors308 of virtualization server 301.

Virtualization server 301 may also include a hypervisor 302. In someembodiments, hypervisor 302 may be a program executed by processors 308on virtualization server 301 to create and manage any number of virtualmachines 332. Hypervisor 302 may be referred to as a virtual machinemonitor, or platform virtualization software. In some embodiments,hypervisor 302 can be any combination of executable instructions andhardware that monitors virtual machines executing on a computingmachine. Hypervisor 302 may be Type 2 hypervisor, where the hypervisorthat executes within an operating system 314 executing on thevirtualization server 301. Virtual machines then execute at a levelabove the hypervisor. In some embodiments, the Type 2 hypervisorexecutes within the context of a user's operating system such that theType 2 hypervisor interacts with the user's operating system. In otherembodiments, one or more virtualization servers 201 in a virtualizationenvironment may instead include a Type 1 hypervisor (not shown). A Type1 hypervisor may execute on the virtualization server 301 by directlyaccessing the hardware and resources within the hardware layer 310. Thatis, while a Type 2 hypervisor 302 accesses system resources through ahost operating system 314, as shown, a Type 1 hypervisor may directlyaccess all system resources without the host operating system 314. AType 1 hypervisor may execute directly on one or more physicalprocessors 308 of virtualization server 301, and may include programdata stored in the physical memory 316.

Hypervisor 302, in some embodiments, can provide virtual resources tooperating systems 330 or control programs 320 executing on virtualmachines 332 in any manner that simulates the operating systems 330 orcontrol programs 320 having direct access to system resources. Systemresources can include, but are not limited to, physical devices 306,physical disks 304, physical processors 308, physical memory 316 and anyother component included in virtualization server 301 hardware layer310. Hypervisor 302 may be used to emulate virtual hardware, partitionphysical hardware, virtualize physical hardware, and/or execute virtualmachines that provide access to computing environments. In still otherembodiments, hypervisor 302 controls processor scheduling and memorypartitioning for a virtual machine 332 executing on virtualizationserver 301. Hypervisor 302 may include those manufactured by VMWare,Inc., of Palo Alto, Calif.; the XEN hypervisor, an open source productwhose development is overseen by the open source Xen.org community;HyperV, VirtualServer or virtual PC hypervisors provided by Microsoft,or others. In some embodiments, virtualization server 301 executes ahypervisor 302 that creates a virtual machine platform on which guestoperating systems may execute. In these embodiments, the virtualizationserver 301 may be referred to as a host server. An example of such avirtualization server is the XEN SERVER provided by Citrix Systems,Inc., of Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

Hypervisor 302 may create one or more virtual machines 332B-C (generally332) in which guest operating systems 330 execute. In some embodiments,hypervisor 302 may load a virtual machine image to create a virtualmachine 332. In other embodiments, the hypervisor 302 may executes aguest operating system 330 within virtual machine 332. In still otherembodiments, virtual machine 332 may execute guest operating system 330.

In addition to creating virtual machines 332, hypervisor 302 may controlthe execution of at least one virtual machine 332. In other embodiments,hypervisor 302 may presents at least one virtual machine 332 with anabstraction of at least one hardware resource provided by thevirtualization server 301 (e.g., any hardware resource available withinthe hardware layer 310). In other embodiments, hypervisor 302 maycontrol the manner in which virtual machines 332 access physicalprocessors 308 available in virtualization server 301. Controllingaccess to physical processors 308 may include determining whether avirtual machine 332 should have access to a processor 308, and howphysical processor capabilities are presented to the virtual machine332.

As shown in FIG. 3, virtualization server 301 may host or execute one ormore virtual machines 332. A virtual machine 332 is a set of executableinstructions that, when executed by a processor 308, imitate theoperation of a physical computer such that the virtual machine 332 canexecute programs and processes much like a physical computing device.While FIG. 3 illustrates an embodiment where a virtualization server 301hosts three virtual machines 332, in other embodiments virtualizationserver 301 can host any number of virtual machines 332. Hypervisor 302,in some embodiments, provides each virtual machine 332 with a uniquevirtual view of the physical hardware, memory, processor and othersystem resources available to that virtual machine 332. In someembodiments, the unique virtual view can be based on one or more ofvirtual machine permissions, application of a policy engine to one ormore virtual machine identifiers, a user accessing a virtual machine,the applications executing on a virtual machine, networks accessed by avirtual machine, or any other desired criteria. For instance, hypervisor302 may create one or more unsecure virtual machines 332 and one or moresecure virtual machines 332. Unsecure virtual machines 332 may beprevented from accessing resources, hardware, memory locations, andprograms that secure virtual machines 332 may be permitted to access. Inother embodiments, hypervisor 302 may provide each virtual machine 332with a substantially similar virtual view of the physical hardware,memory, processor and other system resources available to the virtualmachines 332.

Each virtual machine 332 may include a virtual disk 326A-C (generally326) and a virtual processor 328A-C (generally 328.) The virtual disk326, in some embodiments, is a virtualized view of one or more physicaldisks 304 of the virtualization server 301, or a portion of one or morephysical disks 304 of the virtualization server 301. The virtualizedview of the physical disks 304 can be generated, provided and managed bythe hypervisor 302. In some embodiments, hypervisor 302 provides eachvirtual machine 332 with a unique view of the physical disks 304. Thus,in these embodiments, the particular virtual disk 326 included in eachvirtual machine 332 can be unique when compared with the other virtualdisks 326.

A virtual processor 328 can be a virtualized view of one or morephysical processors 308 of the virtualization server 301. In someembodiments, the virtualized view of the physical processors 308 can begenerated, provided and managed by hypervisor 302. In some embodiments,virtual processor 328 has substantially all of the same characteristicsof at least one physical processor 308. In other embodiments, virtualprocessor 308 provides a modified view of physical processors 308 suchthat at least some of the characteristics of the virtual processor 328are different than the characteristics of the corresponding physicalprocessor 308.

With further reference to FIG. 4, some aspects described herein may beimplemented in a cloud-based environment. FIG. 4 illustrates an exampleof a cloud computing environment (or cloud system) 400. As seen in FIG.4, client computers 411-414 may communicate with a cloud managementserver 410 to access the computing resources (e.g., host servers 403,storage resources 404, and network resources 405) of the cloud system.

Management server 410 may be implemented on one or more physicalservers. The management server 410 may run, for example, CLOUDSTACK byCitrix Systems, Inc. of Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., or OPENSTACK, amongothers. Management server 410 may manage various computing resources,including cloud hardware and software resources, for example, hostcomputers 403, data storage devices 404, and networking devices 405. Thecloud hardware and software resources may include private and/or publiccomponents. For example, a cloud may be configured as a private cloud tobe used by one or more particular customers or client computers 411-414and/or over a private network. In other embodiments, public clouds orhybrid public-private clouds may be used by other customers over an openor hybrid networks.

Management server 410 may be configured to provide user interfacesthrough which cloud operators and cloud customers may interact with thecloud system. For example, the management server 410 may provide a setof APIs and/or one or more cloud operator console applications (e.g.,web-based on standalone applications) with user interfaces to allowcloud operators to manage the cloud resources, configure thevirtualization layer, manage customer accounts, and perform other cloudadministration tasks. The management server 410 also may include a setof APIs and/or one or more customer console applications with userinterfaces configured to receive cloud computing requests from end usersvia client computers 411-414, for example, requests to create, modify,or destroy virtual machines within the cloud. Client computers 411-414may connect to management server 410 via the Internet or othercommunication network, and may request access to one or more of thecomputing resources managed by management server 410. In response toclient requests, the management server 410 may include a resourcemanager configured to select and provision physical resources in thehardware layer of the cloud system based on the client requests. Forexample, the management server 410 and additional components of thecloud system may be configured to provision, create, and manage virtualmachines and their operating environments (e.g., hypervisors, storageresources, services offered by the network elements, etc.) for customersat client computers 411-414, over a network (e.g., the Internet),providing customers with computational resources, data storage services,networking capabilities, and computer platform and application support.Cloud systems also may be configured to provide various specificservices, including security systems, development environments, userinterfaces, and the like.

Certain clients 411-414 may be related, for example, different clientcomputers creating virtual machines on behalf of the same end user, ordifferent users affiliated with the same company or organization. Inother examples, certain clients 411-414 may be unrelated, such as usersaffiliated with different companies or organizations. For unrelatedclients, information on the virtual machines or storage of any one usermay be hidden from other users.

Referring now to the physical hardware layer of a cloud computingenvironment, availability zones 401-402 (or zones) may refer to acollocated set of physical computing resources. Zones may begeographically separated from other zones in the overall cloud ofcomputing resources. For example, zone 401 may be a first clouddatacenter located in California, and zone 402 may be a second clouddatacenter located in Florida. Management sever 410 may be located atone of the availability zones, or at a separate location. Each zone mayinclude an internal network that interfaces with devices that areoutside of the zone, such as the management server 410, through agateway. End users of the cloud (e.g., clients 411-414) might or mightnot be aware of the distinctions between zones. For example, an end usermay request the creation of a virtual machine having a specified amountof memory, processing power, and network capabilities. The managementserver 410 may respond to the user's request and may allocate theresources to create the virtual machine without the user knowing whetherthe virtual machine was created using resources from zone 401 or zone402. In other examples, the cloud system may allow end users to requestthat virtual machines (or other cloud resources) are allocated in aspecific zone or on specific resources 403-405 within a zone.

In this example, each zone 401-402 may include an arrangement of variousphysical hardware components (or computing resources) 403-405, forexample, physical hosting resources (or processing resources), physicalnetwork resources, physical storage resources, switches, and additionalhardware resources that may be used to provide cloud computing servicesto customers. The physical hosting resources in a cloud zone 401-402 mayinclude one or more computer servers 403, such as the virtualizationservers 301 described above, which may be configured to create and hostvirtual machine instances. The physical network resources in a cloudzone 401 or 402 may include one or more network elements 405 (e.g.,network service providers) comprising hardware and/or softwareconfigured to provide a network service to cloud customers, such asfirewalls, network address translators, load balancers, virtual privatenetwork (VPN) gateways, Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP)routers, and the like. The storage resources in the cloud zone 401-402may include storage disks (e.g., solid state drives (SSDs), magnetichard disks, etc.) and other storage devices.

The example cloud computing environment shown in FIG. 4 also may includea virtualization layer (e.g., as shown in FIGS. 1-3) with additionalhardware and/or software resources configured to create and managevirtual machines and provide other services to customers using thephysical resources in the cloud. The virtualization layer may includehypervisors, as described above in FIG. 3, along with other componentsto provide network virtualizations, storage virtualizations, etc. Thevirtualization layer may be as a separate layer from the physicalresource layer, or may share some or all of the same hardware and/orsoftware resources with the physical resource layer. For example, thevirtualization layer may include a hypervisor installed in each of thevirtualization servers 403 with the physical computing resources. Knowncloud systems may alternatively be used, e.g., WINDOWS AZURE (MicrosoftCorporation of Redmond Wash.), AMAZON EC2 (Amazon.com Inc. of Seattle,Wash.), IBM BLUE CLOUD (IBM Corporation of Armonk, N.Y.), or others.

Enterprise Mobility Management Architecture

FIG. 5 represents an enterprise mobility technical architecture 500 foruse in a BYOD environment. The architecture enables a user of a mobiledevice 502 to both access enterprise or personal resources from a mobiledevice 502 and use the mobile device 502 for personal use. The user mayaccess such enterprise resources 504 or enterprise services 508 using amobile device 502 that is purchased by the user or a mobile device 502that is provided by the enterprise to user. The user may utilize themobile device 502 for business use only or for business and personaluse. The mobile device may run an iOS operating system, and Androidoperating system, or the like. The enterprise may choose to implementpolicies to manage the mobile device 504. The policies may be implantedthrough a firewall or gateway in such a way that the mobile device maybe identified, secured or security verified, and provided selective orfull access to the enterprise resources. The policies may be mobiledevice management policies, mobile application management policies,mobile data management policies, or some combination of mobile device,application, and data management policies. A mobile device 504 that ismanaged through the application of mobile device management policies maybe referred to as an enrolled device.

In some embodiments, the operating system of the mobile device may beseparated into a managed partition 510 and an unmanaged partition 512.The managed partition 510 may have policies applied to it to secure theapplications running on and data stored in the managed partition. Theapplications running on the managed partition may be secureapplications. In other embodiments, all applications may execute inaccordance with a set of one or more policy files received separate fromthe application, and which define one or more security parameters,features, resource restrictions, and/or other access controls that areenforced by the mobile device management system when that application isexecuting on the device. By operating in accordance with theirrespective policy file(s), each application may be allowed or restrictedfrom communications with one or more other applications and/orresources, thereby creating a virtual partition. Thus, as used herein, apartition may refer to a physically partitioned portion of memory(physical partition), a logically partitioned portion of memory (logicalpartition), and/or a virtual partition created as a result ofenforcement of one or more policies and/or policy files across multipleapps as described herein (virtual partition). Stated differently, byenforcing policies on managed apps, those apps may be restricted to onlybe able to communicate with other managed apps and trusted enterpriseresources, thereby creating a virtual partition that is impenetrable byunmanaged apps and devices.

The secure applications may be email applications, web browsingapplications, software-as-a-service (SaaS) access applications, WindowsApplication access applications, and the like. The secure applicationsmay be secure native applications 514, secure remote applications 522executed by a secure application launcher 518, virtualizationapplications 526 executed by a secure application launcher 518, and thelike. The secure native applications 514 may be wrapped by a secureapplication wrapper 520. The secure application wrapper 520 may includeintegrated policies that are executed on the mobile device 502 when thesecure native application is executed on the device. The secureapplication wrapper 520 may include meta-data that points the securenative application 514 running on the mobile device 502 to the resourceshosted at the enterprise that the secure native application 514 mayrequire to complete the task requested upon execution of the securenative application 514. The secure remote applications 522 executed by asecure application launcher 518 may be executed within the secureapplication launcher application 518. The virtualization applications526 executed by a secure application launcher 518 may utilize resourceson the mobile device 502, at the enterprise resources 504, and the like.The resources used on the mobile device 502 by the virtualizationapplications 526 executed by a secure application launcher 518 mayinclude user interaction resources, processing resources, and the like.The user interaction resources may be used to collect and transmitkeyboard input, mouse input, camera input, tactile input, audio input,visual input, gesture input, and the like. The processing resources maybe used to present a user interface, process data received from theenterprise resources 504, and the like. The resources used at theenterprise resources 504 by the virtualization applications 526 executedby a secure application launcher 518 may include user interfacegeneration resources, processing resources, and the like. The userinterface generation resources may be used to assemble a user interface,modify a user interface, refresh a user interface, and the like. Theprocessing resources may be used to create information, readinformation, update information, delete information, and the like. Forexample, the virtualization application may record user interactionsassociated with a GUI and communicate them to a server application wherethe server application will use the user interaction data as an input tothe application operating on the server. In this arrangement, anenterprise may elect to maintain the application on the server side aswell as data, files, etc. associated with the application. While anenterprise may elect to “mobilize” some applications in accordance withthe principles herein by securing them for deployment on the mobiledevice, this arrangement may also be elected for certain applications.For example, while some applications may be secured for use on themobile device, others might not be prepared or appropriate fordeployment on the mobile device so the enterprise may elect to providethe mobile user access to the unprepared applications throughvirtualization techniques. As another example, the enterprise may havelarge complex applications with large and complex data sets (e.g.,material resource planning applications) where it would be verydifficult, or otherwise undesirable, to customize the application forthe mobile device so the enterprise may elect to provide access to theapplication through virtualization techniques. As yet another example,the enterprise may have an application that maintains highly secureddata (e.g., human resources data, customer data, engineering data) thatmay be deemed by the enterprise as too sensitive for even the securedmobile environment so the enterprise may elect to use virtualizationtechniques to permit mobile access to such applications and data. Anenterprise may elect to provide both fully secured and fully functionalapplications on the mobile device as well as a virtualizationapplication to allow access to applications that are deemed moreproperly operated on the server side. In an embodiment, thevirtualization application may store some data, files, etc. on themobile phone in one of the secure storage locations. An enterprise, forexample, may elect to allow certain information to be stored on thephone while not permitting other information.

In connection with the virtualization application, as described herein,the mobile device may have a virtualization application that is designedto present GUI's and then record user interactions with the GUI. Theapplication may communicate the user interactions to the server side tobe used by the server side application as user interactions with theapplication. In response, the application on the server side maytransmit back to the mobile device a new GUI. For example, the new GUImay be a static page, a dynamic page, an animation, or the like, therebyproviding access to remotely located resources.

The secure applications may access data stored in a secure datacontainer 528 in the managed partition 510 of the mobile device. Thedata secured in the secure data container may be accessed by the securewrapped applications 514, applications executed by a secure applicationlauncher 522, virtualization applications 526 executed by a secureapplication launcher 522, and the like. The data stored in the securedata container 528 may include files, databases, and the like. The datastored in the secure data container 528 may include data restricted to aspecific secure application 530, shared among secure applications 532,and the like. Data restricted to a secure application may include securegeneral data 534 and highly secure data 538. Secure general data may usea strong form of encryption such as AES 128-bit encryption or the like,while highly secure data 538 may use a very strong form of encryptionsuch as AES 256-bit encryption. Data stored in the secure data container528 may be deleted from the device upon receipt of a command from thedevice manager 524. The secure applications may have a dual-mode option540. The dual mode option 540 may present the user with an option tooperate the secured application in an unsecured or unmanaged mode. In anunsecured or unmanaged mode, the secure applications may access datastored in an unsecured data container 542 on the unmanaged partition 512of the mobile device 502. The data stored in an unsecured data containermay be personal data 544. The data stored in an unsecured data container542 may also be accessed by unsecured applications 548 that are runningon the unmanaged partition 512 of the mobile device 502. The data storedin an unsecured data container 542 may remain on the mobile device 502when the data stored in the secure data container 528 is deleted fromthe mobile device 502. An enterprise may want to delete from the mobiledevice selected or all data, files, and/or applications owned, licensedor controlled by the enterprise (enterprise data) while leaving orotherwise preserving personal data, files, and/or applications owned,licensed or controlled by the user (personal data). This operation maybe referred to as a selective wipe. With the enterprise and personaldata arranged in accordance to the aspects described herein, anenterprise may perform a selective wipe.

The mobile device may connect to enterprise resources 504 and enterpriseservices 508 at an enterprise, to the public Internet 548, and the like.The mobile device may connect to enterprise resources 504 and enterpriseservices 508 through virtual private network connections. The virtualprivate network connections, also referred to as microVPN orapplication-specific VPN, may be specific to particular applications550, particular devices, particular secured areas on the mobile device,and the like 552. For example, each of the wrapped applications in thesecured area of the phone may access enterprise resources through anapplication specific VPN such that access to the VPN would be grantedbased on attributes associated with the application, possibly inconjunction with user or device attribute information. The virtualprivate network connections may carry Microsoft Exchange traffic,Microsoft Active Directory traffic, HTTP traffic, HTTPS traffic,application management traffic, and the like. The virtual privatenetwork connections may support and enable single-sign-on authenticationprocesses 554. The single-sign-on processes may allow a user to providea single set of authentication credentials, which are then verified byan authentication service 558. The authentication service 558 may thengrant to the user access to multiple enterprise resources 504, withoutrequiring the user to provide authentication credentials to eachindividual enterprise resource 504.

The virtual private network connections may be established and managedby an access gateway 560. The access gateway 560 may include performanceenhancement features that manage, accelerate, and improve the deliveryof enterprise resources 504 to the mobile device 502. The access gatewaymay also re-route traffic from the mobile device 502 to the publicInternet 548, enabling the mobile device 502 to access publiclyavailable and unsecured applications that run on the public Internet548. The mobile device may connect to the access gateway via a transportnetwork 562. The transport network 562 may be a wired network, wirelessnetwork, cloud network, local area network, metropolitan area network,wide area network, public network, private network, and the like.

The enterprise resources 504 may include email servers, file sharingservers, SaaS applications, Web application servers, Windows applicationservers, and the like. Email servers may include Exchange servers, LotusNotes servers, and the like. File sharing servers may include ShareFileservers, and the like. SaaS applications may include Salesforce, and thelike. Windows application servers may include any application serverthat is built to provide applications that are intended to run on alocal Windows operating system, and the like. The enterprise resources504 may be premise-based resources, cloud based resources, and the like.The enterprise resources 504 may be accessed by the mobile device 502directly or through the access gateway 560. The enterprise resources 504may be accessed by the mobile device 502 via a transport network 562.The transport network 562 may be a wired network, wireless network,cloud network, local area network, metropolitan area network, wide areanetwork, public network, private network, and the like.

The enterprise services 508 may include authentication services 558,threat detection services 564, device manager services 524, file sharingservices 568, policy manager services 570, social integration services572, application controller services 574, and the like. Authenticationservices 558 may include user authentication services, deviceauthentication services, application authentication services, dataauthentication services and the like. Authentication services 558 mayuse certificates. The certificates may be stored on the mobile device502, by the enterprise resources 504, and the like. The certificatesstored on the mobile device 502 may be stored in an encrypted locationon the mobile device, the certificate may be temporarily stored on themobile device 502 for use at the time of authentication, and the like.Threat detection services 564 may include intrusion detection services,unauthorized access attempt detection services, and the like.Unauthorized access attempt detection services may include unauthorizedattempts to access devices, applications, data, and the like. Devicemanagement services 524 may include configuration, provisioning,security, support, monitoring, reporting, and decommissioning services.File sharing services 568 may include file management services, filestorage services, file collaboration services, and the like. Policymanager services 570 may include device policy manager services,application policy manager services, data policy manager services, andthe like. Social integration services 572 may include contactintegration services, collaboration services, integration with socialnetworks such as Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn, and the like.Application controller services 574 may include management services,provisioning services, deployment services, assignment services,revocation services, wrapping services, and the like.

The enterprise mobility technical architecture 500 may include anapplication store 578. The application store 578 may include unwrappedapplications 580, pre-wrapped applications 582, and the like.Applications may be populated in the application store 578 from theapplication controller 574. The application store 578 may be accessed bythe mobile device 502 through the access gateway 560, through the publicInternet 548, or the like. The application store may be provided with anintuitive and easy to use User Interface.

A software development kit 584 may provide a user the capability tosecure applications selected by the user by wrapping the application asdescribed previously in this description. An application that has beenwrapped using the software development kit 584 may then be madeavailable to the mobile device 502 by populating it in the applicationstore 578 using the application controller 574.

The enterprise mobility technical architecture 500 may include amanagement and analytics capability 588. The management and analyticscapability 588 may provide information related to how resources areused, how often resources are used, and the like. Resources may includedevices, applications, data, and the like. How resources are used mayinclude which devices download which applications, which applicationsaccess which data, and the like. How often resources are used mayinclude how often an application has been downloaded, how many times aspecific set of data has been accessed by an application, and the like.

FIG. 6 is another illustrative enterprise mobility management system600. Some of the components of the mobility management system 500described above with reference to FIG. 5 have been omitted for the sakeof simplicity. The architecture of the system 600 depicted in FIG. 6 issimilar in many respects to the architecture of the system 500 describedabove with reference to FIG. 5 and may include additional features notmentioned above.

In this case, the left hand side represents an enrolled mobile device602 with a client agent 604, which interacts with gateway server 606(which includes access gateway and application controller functionality)to access various enterprise resources 608 and services 609 such asExchange, Sharepoint, PKI Resources, Kerberos Resources, CertificateIssuance service, as shown on the right hand side above. Although notspecifically shown, the mobile device 602 may also interact with anenterprise application store (StoreFront) for the selection anddownloading of applications.

The client agent 604 acts as the UI (user interface) intermediary forWindows apps/desktops hosted in an Enterprise data center, which areaccessed using the HDX/ICA display remoting protocol. The client agent604 also supports the installation and management of native applicationson the mobile device 602, such as native iOS or Android applications.For example, the managed applications 610 (mail, browser, wrappedapplication, secure container to which a VPN, such as anapplication-specific policy-controller VPN can connect to) shown in thefigure above are all native applications that execute locally on thedevice. Client agent 604 and application management framework of thisarchitecture act to provide policy driven management capabilities andfeatures such as connectivity and SSO (single sign on) to enterpriseresources/services 608. The client agent 604 handles primary userauthentication to the enterprise, normally to access gateway (AG) withSSO to other gateway server components. The client agent 604 obtainspolicies from gateway server 606 to control the behavior of the managedapplications 610 on the mobile device 602.

The Secure IPC links 612 between the native applications 610 and clientagent 604 represent a management channel, which allows client agent tosupply policies to be enforced by the application management framework614 “wrapping” each application. The IPC channel 612 also allows clientagent 604 to supply credential and authentication information thatenables connectivity and SSO to enterprise resources 608. Finally theIPC channel 612 allows the application management framework 614 toinvoke user interface functions implemented by client agent 604, such asonline and offline authentication.

Communications between the client agent 604 and gateway server 606 areessentially an extension of the management channel from the applicationmanagement framework 614 wrapping each native managed application 610.The application management framework 614 requests policy informationfrom client agent 604, which in turn requests it from gateway server606. The application management framework 614 requests authentication,and client agent 604 logs into the gateway services part of gatewayserver 606 (e.g., NetScaler access gateway). Client agent 604 may alsocall supporting services on gateway server 606, which may produce inputmaterial to derive encryption keys for the local data vaults 616, orprovide client certificates which may enable direct authentication toPKI protected resources, as more fully explained below.

In more detail, the application management framework 614 “wraps” eachmanaged application 610. This may be incorporated via an explicit buildstep, or via a post-build processing step. The application managementframework 614 may “pair” with client agent 604 on first launch of anapplication 610 to initialize the Secure IPC channel and obtain thepolicy for that application. The application management framework 614may enforce relevant portions of the policy that apply locally, such asthe client agent login dependencies and some of the containment policiesthat restrict how local OS services may be used, or how they mayinteract with the application 610.

The application management framework 614 may use services provided byclient agent 604 over the Secure IPC channel 612 to facilitateauthentication and internal network access. Key management for theprivate and shared data vaults 616 (containers) may be also managed byappropriate interactions between the managed applications 610 and clientagent 604. Vaults 616 may be available only after online authentication,or may be made available after offline authentication if allowed bypolicy. First use of vaults 616 may require online authentication, andoffline access may be limited to at most the policy refresh periodbefore online authentication is again required.

Network access to internal resources may occur directly from individualmanaged applications 610 through access gateway 606. The applicationmanagement framework 614 is responsible for orchestrating the networkaccess on behalf of each application 610. Client agent 604 mayfacilitate these network connections by providing suitable time limitedsecondary credentials obtained following online authentication. Multiplemodes of network connection may be used, such as reverse web proxyconnections and end-to-end VPN-style tunnels 618.

The Mail and Browser managed applications 610 have special status andmay make use of facilities that might not be generally available toarbitrary wrapped applications. For example, the Mail application mayuse a special background network access mechanism that allows it toaccess Exchange over an extended period of time without requiring a fullAG logon. The Browser application may use multiple private data vaultsto segregate different kinds of data.

This architecture supports the incorporation of various other securityfeatures. For example, gateway server 606 (including its gatewayservices) in some cases will not need to validate AD passwords. It canbe left to the discretion of an enterprise whether an AD password isused as an authentication factor for some users in some situations.Different authentication methods may be used if a user is online oroffline (i.e., connected or not connected to a network).

Step up authentication is a feature wherein gateway server 606 mayidentify managed native applications 610 that are allowed to have accessto highly classified data requiring strong authentication, and ensurethat access to these applications is only permitted after performingappropriate authentication, even if this means a re-authentication isrequired by the user after a prior weaker level of login.

Another security feature of this solution is the encryption of the datavaults 616 (containers) on the mobile device 602. The vaults 616 may beencrypted so that all on-device data including files, databases, andconfigurations are protected. For on-line vaults, the keys may be storedon the server (gateway server 606), and for off-line vaults, a localcopy of the keys may be protected by a user password or biometricvalidation. When data is stored locally on the device 602 in the securecontainer 616, it is preferred that a minimum of AES 256 encryptionalgorithm be utilized.

Other secure container features may also be implemented. For example, alogging feature may be included, wherein all security events happeninginside an application 610 are logged and reported to the backend. Datawiping may be supported, such as if the application 610 detectstampering, associated encryption keys may be written over with randomdata, leaving no hint on the file system that user data was destroyed.Screenshot protection is another feature, where an application mayprevent any data from being stored in screenshots. For example, the keywindow's hidden property may be set to YES. This may cause whatevercontent is currently displayed on the screen to be hidden, resulting ina blank screenshot where any content would normally reside.

Local data transfer may be prevented, such as by preventing any datafrom being locally transferred outside the application container, e.g.,by copying it or sending it to an external application. A keyboard cachefeature may operate to disable the autocorrect functionality forsensitive text fields. SSL certificate validation may be operable so theapplication specifically validates the server SSL certificate instead ofit being stored in the keychain. An encryption key generation featuremay be used such that the key used to encrypt data on the device isgenerated using a passphrase or biometric data supplied by the user (ifoffline access is required). It may be XORed with another key randomlygenerated and stored on the server side if offline access is notrequired. Key Derivation functions may operate such that keys generatedfrom the user password use KDFs (key derivation functions, notablyPBKDF2) rather than creating a cryptographic hash of it. The lattermakes a key susceptible to brute force or dictionary attacks.

Further, one or more initialization vectors may be used in encryptionmethods. An initialization vector will cause multiple copies of the sameencrypted data to yield different cipher text output, preventing bothreplay and cryptanalytic attacks. This will also prevent an attackerfrom decrypting any data even with a stolen encryption key if thespecific initialization vector used to encrypt the data is not known.Further, authentication then decryption may be used, wherein applicationdata is decrypted only after the user has authenticated within theapplication. Another feature may relate to sensitive data in memory,which may be kept in memory (and not in disk) only when it's needed. Forexample, login credentials may be wiped from memory after login, andencryption keys and other data inside objective-C instance variables arenot stored, as they may be easily referenced. Instead, memory may bemanually allocated for these.

An inactivity timeout may be implemented, wherein after a policy-definedperiod of inactivity, a user session is terminated.

Data leakage from the application management framework 614 may beprevented in other ways. For example, when an application 610 is put inthe background, the memory may be cleared after a predetermined(configurable) time period. When backgrounded, a snapshot may be takenof the last displayed screen of the application to fasten theforegrounding process. The screenshot may contain confidential data andhence should be cleared.

Another security feature relates to the use of an OTP (one timepassword) 620 without the use of an AD (active directory) 622 passwordfor access to one or more applications. In some cases, some users do notknow (or are not permitted to know) their AD password, so these usersmay authenticate using an OTP 620 such as by using a hardware OTP systemlike SecurID (OTPs may be provided by different vendors also, such asEntrust or Gemalto). In some cases, after a user authenticates with auser ID, a text is sent to the user with an OTP 620. In some cases, thismay be implemented only for online use, with a prompt being a singlefield.

An offline password may be implemented for offline authentication forthose applications 610 for which offline use is permitted via enterprisepolicy. For example, an enterprise may want an enterprise application tobe accessed in this manner. In this case, the client agent 604 mayrequire the user to set a custom offline password and the AD password isnot used. Gateway server 606 may provide policies to control and enforcepassword standards with respect to the minimum length, character classcomposition, and age of passwords, such as described by the standardWindows Server password complexity requirements, although theserequirements may be modified.

Another feature relates to the enablement of a client side certificatefor certain applications 610 as secondary credentials (for the purposeof accessing PKI protected web resources via the application managementframework micro VPN feature). For example, an application may utilizesuch a certificate. In this case, certificate-based authentication usingActiveSync protocol may be supported, wherein a certificate from theclient agent 604 may be retrieved by gateway server 606 and used in akeychain. Each managed application may have one associated clientcertificate, identified by a label that is defined in gateway server606.

Gateway server 606 may interact with an Enterprise special purpose webservice to support the issuance of client certificates to allow relevantmanaged applications to authenticate to internal PKI protectedresources.

The client agent 604 and the application management framework 614 may beenhanced to support obtaining and using client certificates forauthentication to internal PKI protected network resources. More thanone certificate may be supported, such as to match various levels ofsecurity and/or separation requirements. The certificates may be used bythe Mail and Browser managed applications, and ultimately by arbitrarywrapped applications (provided those applications use web service stylecommunication patterns where it is reasonable for the applicationmanagement framework to mediate https requests).

Application management client certificate support on iOS may rely onimporting a PKCS 12 BLOB (Binary Large Object) into the iOS keychain ineach managed application for each period of use. Application managementframework client certificate support may use a HTTPS implementation withprivate in-memory key storage. The client certificate will never bepresent in the iOS keychain and will not be persisted except potentiallyin “online-only” data value that is strongly protected.

Mutual SSL may also be implemented to provide additional security byrequiring that a mobile device 602 is authenticated to the enterprise,and vice versa. Virtual smart cards for authentication to gateway server606 may also be implemented.

Both limited and full Kerberos support may be additional features. Thefull support feature relates to an ability to do full Kerberos login toActive Directory (AD) 622, using an AD password or trusted clientcertificate, and obtain Kerberos service tickets to respond to HTTPNegotiate authentication challenges. The limited support feature relatesto constrained delegation in AFEE, where AFEE supports invoking Kerberosprotocol transition so it can obtain and use Kerberos service tickets(subject to constrained delegation) in response to HTTP Negotiateauthentication challenges. This mechanism works in reverse web proxy(aka CVPN) mode, and when http (but not https) connections are proxiedin VPN and MicroVPN mode.

Another feature relates to application container locking and wiping,which may automatically occur upon jail-break or rooting detections, andoccur as a pushed command from administration console, and may include aremote wipe functionality even when an application 610 is not running.

A multi-site architecture or configuration of enterprise applicationstore and an application controller may be supported that allows usersto be service from one of several different locations in case offailure.

In some cases, managed applications 610 may be allowed to access acertificate and private key via an API (example OpenSSL). Trustedmanaged applications 610 of an enterprise may be allowed to performspecific Public Key operations with an application's client certificateand private key. Various use cases may be identified and treatedaccordingly, such as when an application behaves like a browser and nocertificate access is required, when an application reads a certificatefor “who am I,” when an application uses the certificate to build asecure session token, and when an application uses private keys fordigital signing of important data (e.g. transaction log) or fortemporary data encryption.

ILLUSTRATIVE EMBODIMENT(S)

Many mobile resource management (MRM) solutions (also referred to hereinas EMM, MDM and MAM, each of which may include MRM) may face thechallenge of managing applications and their associated policies via acommon control point managed by corporate information technology (IT)administrators. The actual policies that are available for anyparticular managed mobile application can vary greatly. Factors such asthe particular MRM solution software version, the specific version ofMRM tools or SDK used to prepare the application, and the applicationlogic itself can all influence which policies and settings are availablefor IT administrators to configure and control.

Applications themselves can be developed and deployed quickly andupdated frequently. As such, it is recognized that efficiencies can begained by decoupling the policies from the underlying control point insuch a way that the policy settings themselves as well as theadministrative user interface (U/I) for configuring them need not behardwired into the control point server software. Without thisdecoupling, the control point software would need to be upgraded everytime a new application policy setting was needed.

An improved technique ensures that a wide range of policies, includingapplication-specific policies and settings, can be composed, configuredthrough an administrative interface, and delivered to the deployedapplications, without requiring changes to control point software.

Enterprises may create (or adapt) their native mobile applications usingtools and SDKs associated with the MRM solution they have chosen todeploy. Depending upon the tools or SDK version used to prepare suchapplications, one can expect that there will be a default set ofpolicies that the MRM system provides automatically. These defaultpolicies can be further augmented by an application developer definingtheir own application specific policies and settings.

All policies and settings may be defined using a declarative syntax(metadata) that in some variations may include the various elementsassociated with each setting. In an example, the metadata is provided inthe form of an XML (Extensible Markup Language) document that definesindividual elements listed for each setting. For example, to define thebeginning and end of a policy file, an XML document may use the tags<policymetadata> and </policymetadata>, respectively. The collection ofpolicy setting may be between section tags <policies> and </policies>.Each policy setting may include elements such as the following:

-   -   a. Setting identifier, e.g., using special policy setting tags        <policy> and </policy>, where the tags mentioned in the        following elements are included between;    -   b. Setting group or category identifier, e.g., included between        <policycategory> and </policycategory> tags;    -   c. Setting name, e.g., included between <policyname> and        </policyname> tags;    -   d. Setting type (Boolean, integer, string, multistring, enum,        uniform resource identifier (URI), etc), e.g., included between        <policytype> and </policytype> tags;    -   e. Range of possible settings values (if needed dependent on        setting type);    -   f. Default setting value, e.g., included between <policydefault>        and </policydefault> tags;    -   g. Setting friendly name string (default language plus resource        ID for localized name), e.g., included between <policystrings>        and </policystrings> tags;    -   h. Setting units and other user interface (U/I) display strings        (default language plus references to resource ID for localized        strings), e.g., included between <policystrings> and        </policystrings> tags;    -   i. Explanation and extended help text strings (default language        plus references to resource ID for localized strings), e.g.,        included between <policystrings> and </policystrings> tags;

The various setting group or category identifiers that are available foreach policy setting may defined using special <category> and </category>tags, and the collection of setting group or category identifiers may beincluded between <categories> and </categories> tags. The collection ofsetting group identifiers and the collection of settings may be includedbetween the <policymetadata> and </policymetadata> tags. Accordingly, anXML document that defines a policy may take the general form similar tothe following nested arrangement of XML tags with comments in [ ]:

<policymetadata>  [tag to define version number of policy]<versionnumber>1.1</versionnumber> <categories> <category> [exampledefinition for a setting group identifier provided below]<categoryid>Access_Auth</categoryid> <catlabel res_id=“ACCESS_AUTH”>Authentication</catlabel> </category> [additional definitions forsetting group identifiers] </categories> <policies> <policy> [exampledefinition for a setting provided below]<policyname>ReauthenticationPeriod</policyname><policytype>integer</policytype><policycategory>Access_Auth</policycategory><policydefault>480</policydefault> <policystrings>  <titleres_id=“REATUH_PERIOD_TITLE”>Reauthentication period (minutes)</title> <units res_id=“REATUH_PERIOD_UNITS”>minutes</units>  <descriptionres_id=“REATUH_PERIOD_DESC”>Defines the period before a user ischallenged to authenticate again. If set to zero, the user is promptedfor authentication each time app is started or activated. Default valueis 480 minutes (8 hours).</description> </policystrings> </policy>[additional definitions for settings] </policies> </policymetadata>

FIG. 7 illustrates an example method for configuring a policy for amanaged application. Additionally, FIG. 7 illustrates a method that isperformed by the processing circuitry of one or more computingdevices—such as an access gateway, another server under control by an ITadministrator of an enterprise (or other user), or another device actingas a control point—when operating in accordance with various softwareconstructs.

At step 701, the one or more computing device may receive initial policysettings or other data for inclusion in a policy. For example,application preparation tools may assemble one or more policies (alsoreferred herein interchangeably as policy metadata, settingdescriptions, and the like) including, for example, a set of default MRMsystem-provided policies, which may also include one or moreapplication-specific policies or settings provided by the applicationdeveloper. Such policies or settings may be packaged directly into theapplication bundle that will be uploaded to the computing deviceconfigured to perform the method of FIG. 7 (e.g., a control point,access gateway 560 of FIG. 5, or the like).

When a managed application is uploaded (e.g, for the purpose ofpublishing the application for enterprise users to consume), the one ormore computing devices may proceed to finalize configuration of thepolicy for the managed application, as illustrated in steps 703-709 ofFIG. 7.

At step 703, the one or more computing devices may create or otherwisedisplay a user interface (UI) to display various portions of the initialpolicy settings. For example, upon uploading of the managed application,the one or more computing devices may read the initial policy settingsor any other metadata associated with or packaged with the applicationand may dynamically compose an administrative user interface for allsetting descriptions, policy metadata, etc. Further details related tothe user interface will be discussed below in connection with FIGS.12A-12J

At step 705, the one or more computing device may receive input via theuser interface to set, change, and/or add to one or more of the initialpolicy settings. For example, the IT administrator (or other user that,for example, has admin privileges) may interact with the variouscontrols of the user interface to perform various actions to set orchange a policy including, for example: choosing, modifying, entering,or creating settings that are appropriate for the managed application;or leaving preexisting settings set to the current or default value.

At step 707, the one or more computing devices may determine to produceone or more published versions of the policy. In some variations, thedetermination may be made responsive to input that is received via theuser interface from the IT administrator (or other user). Such inputmay, for example, represent an acceptance of the policy for the managedapplication or a command to publish the policy.

Additionally, the user interface may be configured to allow the ITadministrator (or other user) to create multiple policies from thepolicy settings. Each policy may, for example, be specific to adifferent user role associated with the enterprise (e.g., one policy fora sales employee; a different policy for a designer, etc.) orapplication group (e.g., a managed application may be assigned to anapplication group that provides various constraints or benefits tomember applications, such as shared access to data stored in datacontainers, or the like).

At step 709, the one or more computing devices may produce one or morepolicy files for the managed application. For example, after the ITadministrator (or other user) approves the policy forpublishing/distribution to one or more mobile devices, a JSON(JavaScript Object Notation) or XML dictionary of key/value pairsrepresenting each defined setting name (dictionary name) and itsassigned value may be produced. In some environments, the settings ofthe policy file represent the corporate policy that should be enforcedin order to access resources that are accessible via the access gatewayor to execute the managed application.

As discussed above, the user interface may be configured to allow the ITadministrator (or other user) to create multiple policies from thepolicy settings. Accordingly, multiple policies may be produced witheach policy being specific to a different user role associated with theenterprise (e.g., one policy for a sales employee; a different policyfor a designer, etc.) or application group (e.g., a managed applicationmay be assigned to an application group that provides variousconstraints or benefits to member applications, such as shared access todata stored in data containers, or the like).

At step 711, the one or more computing devices may provide the managedapplication and the policy file available to be available for downloadby one or more mobile devices. For example, once uploaded andconfigured, the managed applications and any associated policy can bemade available to an enterprise's employees to peruse and choose toinstall. In some instances the version of the application and the policythat is made available to each user can be based on their role withinthe organization. Alternatively, such applications and policies can bepushed directly to mobile devices for users who have enrolled orregistered their device with a corporate MDM server that provides such apush service.

Further, in some instances, distribution of the policy may be separatefrom distribution of the managed application. For example, when anemployee executes a managed application on the mobile device, they maybe challenged to authenticate their corporate identity along withpasswords and other factors as dictated by corporate policy. Afterhaving authenticated the user and/or device, the access managercomponents of the system may verify that the user is entitled to theapplication in question and download the JSON or XML policy file thatrepresent the settings that have been established by the administratorfor this user or mobile device when using this specific managedapplication.

Transmission of the policy and managed application to the mobile devicemay, in some variations, be performed using one or more applicationspecific VPN tunnels, such as a MicroVPN (discussed above).

After distribution to the user's devices and to enforce the varioussettings in the policy, the policy file can be consulted by theapplication or MRM software embedded within the mobile device (e.g., bythe client agent 604 of FIG. 6) whenever a policy decision is needed atrun time. In some embodiments, the policy may be cached and periodicallyrefreshed to ensure continued compliance with configured administrativesettings produce a policy file for the managed application (e.g., an ITadministrator may update a policy by performing a method similar to thatillustrated in FIG. 7 to change, delete, or add to the policy). Indeed,in some variations, one of the policy settings may dictate a requiredupdate frequency to the policy. Alternatively, the MRM system may beconfigured to check if an updated version of the policy exists when, forexample, the access gateway receives an indication that the managedapplication is executing on the mobile device (e.g., the access gatewayreceives a request to authenticate the user, mobile device orapplication; the access gateway receives a request to create anapplication specific VPN tunnel, the access gateway receives a requestto access a resource that is accessible through the access gateway, orthe like). If an update exists, the MRM system may transmit the updatedversion of the policy to the mobile device.

In some variations, transmission of an update to the policy may beperformed without updating the managed application. Further, the user ofthe mobile device may be unaware of the update to the policy.

As new versions of the EMM toolkit or SDK become available and as newapplications are developed and adapted to this system, the available setof policies needed by a current application mix that is installed on amobile device can grow dramatically. However, no change in control pointsoftware is needed to offer administrative control over the new settingssurfaced by these newly deployed applications.

To configure one or more policies, the settings included in a policy orother metadata, an enterprise may provide a user interface that isusable by an operator to view, create, and edit the policies,applications, and other data related to the same. FIG. 12A-12Jillustrate example user interfaces that can be used to configure one ormore policies, settings or metadata. In some embodiments, the userinterface may be executed by one or more computing devices, such as anaccess gateway another server under control by an IT administrator of anenterprise, or another device acting as a control point. In particular,the user interface of FIGS. 12A-12J may be usable by an operator orother user with administrator privileges. Accordingly, the operator maybe required to log in prior to viewing the user interface displayed inFIGS. 12A-12J. FIGS. 12A-12J as illustrated with an “administrator”being logged in, as indicated at display 1205 of FIG. 12A. Whileadditional details for configuring a policy will be described throughoutthis disclosure (e.g., in connection with FIG. 7), the example userinterfaces will be described, for example, to illustrate varioussettings that may comprise a policy and other data that an operator mayview when an enterprise provides managed applications and policies tomobile devices.

As illustrated in FIG. 12A, an example dashboard interface 1210 isshown. The dashboard 1210 may provide a quick snapshot of user activityover a specified period of time (e.g., the last 24 hours of useractivity, as shown at 1205). In the illustrated embodiment, thedashboard 1210 displays the total number of users that have logged invia display 1215; the number of applications or resources that have beenaccessed by those total number of users via display 1225; and thecurrent number of connected user sessions via display 1220.

FIGS. 12B-12J illustrate different views of the user interface thatprovide options for viewing and editing the policies for theapplications and resources. The example embodiment organizes the optionsunder “Apps & Docs” tab 1310. The policies may be for resources ofvarious types and the user interface may be organized based on thevarious types. For example, as illustrated, the user interface of FIG.12B is organized into a mobile application type 1320, a document type1365, and a desktop application type 1375. These general resource typesmay be further divided into sub-type such as by operating system (e.g.,mobile application type 1320 is illustrated as being sub-divided intoapplications for the Android operating system 1330 and iOS operatingsystem 1335; and desktop application type 1375 is illustrated as beingsub-divided into applications for the Windows operating system 1380);whether the resource provides a web-based service or a software as aservice (SAAS) model (e.g., a type for web service and SaaS modelapplications 1340); whether the resource functions as a simple link to awebsite (e.g., a type for a web link application 1345); whether theresource is an application store or marketplace (e.g., a type for publicapplication stores/marketplaces 1350 and a type for enterpriseapplication stores/marketplaces 1360); whether the resource is beingprovided by a cloud service (e.g., a type for providing documents via afile share service 1370); and whether the resource has been disabledfrom being available to users (e.g., a type for disabled applications1355). In some embodiments, these types may not be specified in anypolicy file or metadata. Indeed, these types may be solely for thebenefit of the administrator in navigating the user interface to findthe resource policy file in which he or she intends to create/edit.However, in others, the type and sub-type may be specified in a policyfile. For example, when the policy is first created, the administratormay specify the type and version number, which can be viewed afterpolicy creation but not editable (e.g., settings 1520 and 1525 of FIG.12D).

After choosing one of the resource types or sub-types, the administratormay be presented with a listing of policies associated with thatresource type. As further illustrated in FIG. 12B, the sub-type Android1330 for the application type 1325 has been selected, and a number oficons are shown as being presented. Included in the icons is an icon foreach policy that has been created (e.g., icon 1390 and icon 1395). WhileFIG. 12B illustrates these icons as being blank, they may includegraphics and/or text within the icon's border or surrounding the icon.Also included in the icons is an icon for creating a new policy 1385.While the remaining portion of FIGS. 12C-12J will be described inconnection with configuring a policy for a mobile application of theAndroid operating system, different policy settings and displays may beused for the different resource types.

As will be described in connection with FIG. 12C, each policy may alsobe given a category setting. The administrator may be able to filter thedisplayed icons by pull-down selector 1315, which lists the variouscategories of the policies.

When an administrator selects an icon (e.g., via a “single-click”), asummary window may appear that provides a few details from the policyfile/metadata and a few additional selectable options. For example, whenicon 1405 of FIG. 12C is selected, the details may include a displayname 1410 for the policy (which is editable at 1510 of FIG. 12D), adescription 1415 for the policy (which is editable at 1515 of FIG. 12D),an internal or workflow name 1420 for the policy (which is editable at1610 of FIG. 12E), a single sign on (SSO) type 1425 for the policy; anda category 1430 for the policy (which is editable at 1545 of FIG. 12D).The additional selectable options may include an option 1435 todisable/enable the policy; an option 1440 to delete the policy; anoption 1445 to edit the policy; and an option 1450 to push the policy tousers' devices.

If the administrator selects to edit the policy via option 1445, amobile application details screen 1505 may be displayed in the userinterface. The details screen 1505 may present an opportunity for theadministrator to view and edit various settings of the policy.

When it is initially viewed, the mobile application details screen 1505may first present the settings associated with the details group for thepolicy (e.g., setting group identifier 1502 for details settings). Forexample, the resource name that the policy is for may be defined (e.g.,mobile application name setting 1510) and a short description of theresource may also be defined (e.g., description 1515). The resource typeand resource version may both be viewable (e.g., mobile application type1520 and mobile application version 1525), and may have been definedwhen the policy was first created.

When the policy is first created, the resource/application that thepolicy is to be applied to may be analyzed to determine the defaultsettings for the policy. For example, an application can be analyzed todetermine the application programming interface (API) calls that itperforms and various settings can be included in the policy based onthose API calls. As a particular example, if the application makes acall to the mobile device's camera, various settings to block/allowaccess to the camera may be included in the policy. If no calls are madeto the mobile device's camera, setting(s) to block/allow access to thecamera may not be included in the policy.

The policy may also define various version constraints on the resource.For example, FIG. 12D illustrates a policy setting for enforcing aminimum and maximum operating system version for a mobile application atminimum OS version 1530 and maximum OS version 1535. The policy may alsoexclude one or more devices from being able to access/install theresource (e.g., excluded devices setting 1540). A category for thepolicy may be defined (e.g., category setting 1545 and one of the typesenumerated by pull-down selector 1315). The policy may include a userrole setting to enforce a role a user must be assigned in order toaccess/install the resource (e.g., assigned role setting 1550). Thepolicy may also include a setting to enforce a requirement that theresource be installed on the mobile device (e.g., require applicationinstallation setting 1555). After viewing/editing the various policysettings on the mobile application details screen 1505, theadministrator may press the next button 1560 to save the settings ofmobile application details screen 1505 to the policy file.

After pressing next button 1505, the user interface may display thesettings associated with the workflow group for the policy (e.g.,setting group 1602 for workflow settings), which is illustrated in FIG.12E. The settings that can be viewed/edited at mobile applicationworkflow screen 1602 include a setting that distribution of the policyto a user's device requires approval (e.g., approval setting 1605), asetting specifying a workflow name for the policy (e.g., workflow name1610), and a description of the workflow (e.g., description setting1615). After viewing/editing the mobile application workflow settings,the administrator may press next button 1620 to save the workflowsettings of the mobile application details screen 1505 to the policyfile.

After pressing next button 1620, the user interface may display theremaining policy settings (e.g., policy settings 1702), which areillustrated in FIGS. 12F-12J. Policy settings 1702 may include theremaining setting groups that are enumerated in the policy including,for example, a setting group for authentication settings (setting group1705 for authentication settings, as illustrated in FIG. 12F); a settinggroup for device security settings (setting group 1730 for devicesecurity settings, as illustrated in FIGS. 12F and 12G); a setting groupfor network requirement settings (setting group 1810 for networkrequirement settings, as illustrated in FIG. 12G); a setting group formiscellaneous access settings (setting group 1830 for miscellaneousnetwork access settings, as illustrated in FIG. 12G); a setting groupfor encryption settings (setting group 1905 for encryption settings, asillustrated in FIG. 12H); a setting group for application interactionsettings (setting group 2005 for mobile application interactionsettings, as illustrated in FIG. 12I); a setting group for applicationrestriction settings (setting groups 2025 and 2125 for applicationrestriction settings, as illustrated in FIGS. 12I and 12J); and a groupfor network access settings (setting group 2105 for network accesssettings, as illustrated in FIG. 12J).

As illustrated in FIG. 12F, a policy file may include various settingsdefined as part of an authentication settings group identifier (e.g.,those illustrated in FIG. 12F as being part of setting group 1705).

Authentication group settings may include authentication setting 1710,which may define what level of authentication is required, such aswhether a networked log-on with the access gateway is required beforeaccessing the application, whether offline access of the application ispermitted, whether access of the application can only be performed whenoffline, or whether authentication is not required to access theapplication.

The policy may also specify a maximum offline period setting 1715, whichspecifies a time period that, when exceeded by the mobile device, wouldcause the mobile device to challenge the user for the enterprise logonbefore allowing access to the application. As illustrated, maximumoffline period setting 1715 is set for 72 hours. In some embodiments,the minimum amount is 1 hour. Additionally, in some arrangements whereauthentication setting 1710 is set to requiring a networked-log on, theuser will be reminded that a networked log-on will be required atvarious times before the period expires (e.g., 30 minutes, 10 minutes,etc.), and, after expiration, the application remains locked until theuser completes a successful network log-on. Alternatively, if theauthentication setting 1710 is set to requiring a networked log-on,setting 1715 may be ignored with no offline access allowed.

The policy may also specify a re-authentication period setting 1720,which defines a period where when it is expired and the application isre-started, a user is challenged to re-authenticate. In somearrangements, if set to zero, the user is prompted for authenticationeach time app is started or activated. As illustrated, re-authenticationperiod setting 1720 is set for 480 minutes (e.g., 8 hours). Accordingly,when the application is re-started after 8 hours from a previousauthentication, the user will be required to re-authenticate (e.g.,supply the log-on username and password).

The policy may also specify a domain name of the access gateway that themobile device is to use when authenticating. As illustrated, gatewaydomain name setting 1725 allows an administrator to specify a fullyqualified domain name (FQDN) of an access gateway that will handleauthentication.

As illustrated in FIGS. 12F and 12G, a policy file may include varioussettings defined as part of a device security settings group identifier(e.g., those illustrated in FIGS. 12F and 12G as being part of settinggroup 1730).

Device security settings group 1730 may include a setting specifyingwhether to block jailbroken or rooted devices. For example, blockjailbroken setting 1735, if set to “on” the application is locked whenthe device is jailbroken or rooted. If setting 1735 is set to “off” theapplication can run even if the device is jailbroken or rooted.

The policy may also include a require device encryption setting 1740. Ifrequire device encryption setting 1740 is set to “on” data stored on themobile device will be encrypted (e.g., in accordance with the encryptionsettings group, as discussed below). If require device encryptionsetting 1740 is set to “off” the data stored on the mobile device is notencrypted.

The policy may also include a require device PIN (personalidentification number) or password setting 1745. If setting 1745 is setto “on” the user will be required to lock/unlock the mobile device usinga PIN or password. If set to “off” the mobile phone will not be requiredto be locked via a PIN or password.

The policy may also include a require device pattern screen lock setting1805. If setting 1805 is set to “on” the user will be required tolock/unlock the mobile device using a pattern screen lock mechanism. Ifset to “off” the mobile phone will not be required to be locked via apattern screen lock mechanism.

As illustrated in FIG. 12G, a policy file may include various settingsdefined as part of a network requirements settings group identifier(e.g., those illustrated in FIG. 12G as being part of setting group1810).

Network requirements setting group 1810 may include a require WiFisetting 1815. If setting 1815 is set to “on” the application will belocked when the device is not connected to a WiFi network (e.g., 3G, 4G,LAN connection, etc.). If setting 1815 is set to “of” the applicationwill be able to run even if the mobile device does not have an activeWiFi connection.

The policy may also include a require internal network setting 1820. Ifsetting 1820 is set to “on” the application is allowed to run on themobile device only when the mobile device is connected inside theenterprise network. If setting 1820 is set to “off” the application canrun from an external network.

The policy may also include an internal WiFi network setting 1825.Setting 1825 may be defined by a comma separated list of allowedinternal WiFi network identifiers (e.g., SSID). In some arrangements,this setting applies only when connected via an internal enterprisenetwork. For example, when the mobile device is connected from insidethe enterprise network, application access is blocked unless the deviceis connected via one of the listed network identifiers. If setting 1825is empty, any internal WiFi network may be used. If logged on from anexternal network (or not logged on), this setting may not enforced.

As illustrated in FIG. 12G, a policy file may include various settingsdefined as part of a miscellaneous access settings group identifier(e.g., those illustrated in FIG. 12G as being part of setting group1830).

Miscellaneous access setting group 1830 may include an update graceperiod setting 1835. Setting 1835 may define the grace period withinwhich the application may continue to be used after the system hasdiscovered that an update is available.

The policy may also include an authentication failure setting 1840.Setting 1840 may define a number of consecutive failed offline passwordchallenges that will cause the application to become locked. Oncelocked, the application may only be unlocked through a successfulnetwork log-on. In some arrangements, if setting 1840 is set to zero,authentication failures will never cause the application to becomelocked.

The policy may also include an erase application data setting 1845.Setting 1845 may define whether application data should be deleted whenthe application is locked. If setting 1845 is set to “on” datamaintained by the application may be erased when the application islocked.

Erasing such data may effectively reset the application to its originalinstalled state. If setting 1845 is set to “off” data maintained by theapplication is not erased when the app is locked. An application can belocked for various reasons such as, for example: loss of applicationentitlement for the user; application subscription removed; user accountremoved by the enterprise, too many application authentication failures,the mobile device being jailbroken or rooted without policy permittingapplication access when the device is jailbroken/rooted, device placedin lock state by administrative action, and the like.

The policy may also include an active poll period setting 1850. Setting1850 defines a poll period for reaching the application controller andproviding the application controller with information about thelock/erase status of the mobile device and the enable/disable status ofthe application. After a successful poll, the interval may be restartedand a new poll will again be attempted upon expiration of the specifiedpoll period.

As illustrated in FIG. 12H, a policy file may include various settingsdefined as part of an encryption settings group identifier (e.g., thoseillustrated in FIG. 12H as being part of setting group 1905).

Encryption settings group 1905 may include an encryption keys setting1910 to allow how encryption keys are managed. For example, if setting1910 is set to “online access only” data used to derive encryption keyscannot be persist on the device (e.g., be stored in a long-termstorage). Instead, such data must be recovered from the enterprise eachtime the encryption keys are to be derived. If setting 1910 is set to“offline access permitted” data used to derive encryption keys canpersist on the device. In some arrangements, if setting 1910 is set to“online access only” authentication setting 1710 is enforced to be setto “network logon.”

The policy may also include a private file encryption setting 1915 thatspecifies a security group which can access the application's privatefiles. This allows for different applications assigned to the specifiedsecurity group to derive the keys used to encrypt/decrypt the privatefiles.

The policy may also include a private file encryption setting 1920 thatspecifies exclusions to databases/specific locations where privatefiles/data will not be automatically encrypted.

The policy may also include an access limit setting 1925 that specifiesaccess limits for public files.

The policy may also include a public file encryption setting 1930 thatspecifies a security group which can access the application's publicfiles. This allows for different applications assigned to the specifiedsecurity group to derive the keys used to encrypt/decrypt the publicfiles.

The policy may also include a public file encryption setting 1935 thatspecifies exclusions to databases/specific locations where publicfiles/data will not be automatically encrypted.

The policy may also include a public file migration setting 1940 thatspecifies the access permissions that public files are assigned.

As illustrated in FIG. 12I, a policy file may include various settingsdefined as part of an application interaction settings group identifier(e.g., those illustrated in FIG. 12I as being part of setting group2005).

Application interaction setting group 2005 may include a security groupsetting 2010 that specifies a security group for the policy. In somearrangements, when this setting is set to blank, all applications canexchange data with the application. In some embodiments, when thisapplication is given one or more comma separated security groupidentifiers, only security groups matching one of the listed identifierswill be able to exchange data with the application.

The policy may also include a cut and copy setting 2015 that, forexample, specifies whether the application is able to perform cut andcopy operations (e.g., blocked or unrestricted), or whether theapplication is only able to cut and copy operations with applications inits security group (e.g., restricted). When setting 2015 is set to“restricted” cut or copied data is placed in a private clipboard that isonly available to applications having the same security group as theapplication. A similar setting could be included in a policy related topaste operations.

The policy may also include a document exchange setting 2020. Setting2020, in some variations, blocks, permits, or restricts documentexchange operations for this application (e.g., by being set to blocked,unrestricted or restricted). When setting 2020 is set to “restricted”data can be exchanged only with other applications having the samesecurity group as the application.

As illustrated in FIGS. 12I and 12J, a policy file may include varioussettings defined as part of an application restriction settings groupidentifier (e.g., those illustrated in FIGS. 12I and 12J as being partof setting group 2025 and setting group 2125).

Application restriction settings group 2125 may include a disablediagnostic logging setting 2030. If setting 2030 is set to “on” theapplication is unable to interact with the mobile device's diagnosticlogging operations. If set to “off” the diagnostic logging operationsare allowed to be performed for the application.

The policy may also include a block camera setting 2035. If setting 2035is set to “on” the application may be unable to access the mobiledevice's camera. If set to “off” the application may be able to accessthe mobile device's camera.

The policy may also include a block microphone record setting 2040. Ifsetting 2040 is set to “on” the application may be unable to record datavia the mobile device's microphone. If set to “off” the application maybe able to access/record from the mobile device's microphone.

The policy may also include a block location services setting 2045. Ifsetting 2045 is set to “on” the application may be unable to access themobile device's location services (e.g., global positioning services(GPS)). If set to “off” the application may be able to access the mobiledevice's location services.

The policy may also include a block short messaging service (SMS)setting 2050. If setting 2050 is set to “on” the application may beunable to access the mobile device's SMS compose function. If set to“off” the application may be able to access the mobile device's SMScompose function.

The policy may also include a block screen capture setting 2130. Ifsetting 2130 is set to “on” the application may be unable to access themobile device's screen capture function. If set to “off” the applicationmay be able to access the mobile device's screen capture function.

The policy may also include a block device sensor setting 2135. Ifsetting 2135 is set to “on” the application may be unable to access themobile device's sensors (e.g., acceleration, orientation sensors, andthe like). If set to “off” the application may be able to access themobile device's sensors.

As illustrated in FIG. 12J, a policy file may include various settingsdefined as part of a network access settings group identifier (e.g.,those illustrated in FIG. 12J as being part of setting group 2105).

Network access settings group 2105 may include a network access setting2110. Setting 2110 can have various values related to preventing,permitting or redirecting network activity that is attempted by/intendedfor the application. For example, if setting 2110 is set to“unrestricted” no restrictions are placed on the network access of theapplication. If setting 2110 is set to “blocked” all network access isblocked. If setting 2110 is set to “tunneled to the internal network” anapplication-specific VPN tunnel back to the access gateway may berequired for all network access.

The policy may include a certificate label setting 2115 that allows fora particular certificate to be used for network access.

The policy may include an authentication support setting 2120 thatspecifies whether a user should be authenticated before allowing networkaccess.

After viewing/editing the various policy settings, the administrator maypress save button 2140 to save the policy settings to the policy file.

The above settings are meant to only be examples of the types ofsettings that could be included in a policy. Variations on the abovesettings or different settings not discussed above could be included ina policy.

For example, additional types of policy settings not shown in FIGS.12A-12J include, for example, a disable e-mail setting thatblocks/allows access to the mobile device's e-mail functions; a disablepaste setting that blocks/allows paste operations; a disable printsetting that blocks/allows access to the mobile device's printfunctions; a disable cloud setting that blocks/allows access to themobile device's cloud services; and one or more network traffic filters.

One example of a traffic filter is an outbound traffic filter. Someapplications, such as iOS applications, can dispatch uniform resourcelocator (URL) requests to other applications that have been registeredto handle specific schemes (such as “http://”). Such an outbound trafficfilter setting may provide a mechanism for an application to passrequests for help to another application. This setting serves to filterthe URLs that are passed from this application to other applications. Insome arrangements, the value of the setting should be formatted as acomma separated list of patterns where each pattern may be preceded by aplus “+” or minus “−”. Outbound URLs can be compared against thepatterns in the order listed until a match is found.

Once matched, the action taken may be dictated by the prefix. A minus“−” prefix blocks the URL from being passed out to another application.A plus “+” prefix permits the URL to be passed out to anotherapplication for handling. If neither “+” or “−” is provided with thepattern, a default action may be taken (e.g., allow is assumed). A pairof values separated by “=” may indicate a substitution where occurrencesof the first string are replaced with the second. The regular-expression“̂” prefix may be used to require the pattern to occur at the beginningof the URL. In some embodiments, if an outbound URL does not match anypattern in the list, it will be blocked. A similar filter setting couldbe constructed for an inbound network traffic filter.

By relying on a comprehensive metadata description of all policies andsettings associated with managed applications that, in some instances,may be embedded within the application bundle itself, the administrativecontrol point for the policies can dynamically compose user interfacefor these settings, thereby decoupling the back end EMM server softwarefrom the specific knowledge of policies to be offered.

Further, this data driven description of policy settings may simplifydelivery of policy settings dynamically to an application at runtimewithout any middleware knowledge of the semantics of these settings.

FIG. 8 illustrates an example environment in which various policies maybe configured. The environment of FIG. 8 provide additional details notshown in FIGS. 5 and 6 and, specifically, show various aspects relatedto configuring policies for managed applications, as described herein(e.g., in connection with FIG. 7 and in connection with thebelow-described methods of the remaining figures). As shown, a mobiledevice 810 may communicate, e.g., over the Internet or some othernetwork, with MRM system 830. The MRM system 830 may include, forexample, an authentication server 832 (e.g., that providesauthentication services, such as those described in connection with FIG.5), an application store 834 (e.g., application store 578 of FIG. 5),and an administrative user interface generator 836, or any of the othercomponents described above in connection with FIGS. 3 through 6 (e.g.,MRM system 830 may include an access gateway or other component). Suchother components are omitted from FIG. 8 for simplicity.

In some embodiments, an application developer 840 may develop anapplication 812 that is to be managed by one or more policies. Theapplication developer may also produce initial policy metadata 846. Thepolicy metadata 846 may define a set of policies for controlling dataflow into and/or out of the managed application 812. In some instances,the policy metadata may include a first set of policy metadata that isgeneral to the MRM system 830 and a second set of policy metadata thatis specific to the managed application 812. The application developer840 (or multiple developers) may develop multiple mobile applications,each with metadata general to the MRM system 830 and withapplication-specific metadata.

The managed application 812 and policy metadata 846 may be received atthe MRM system 830 (e.g., received from application developer 812) andprovided to other otherwise received by the administrative UI generator836. Upon receiving the managed application 812 and policy metadata 846,the administrative UI generator 836 may dynamically generate anadministrative UI 850. An administrator, such as an IT administrator,can then view the policy metadata 846 via a viewing component of UI 850and customize the policy settings included in the policy metadata 846,e.g., based on rules of the MRM system 830 and/or other considerations.Subsequent to the administrator's customizations is policy 856, whichmay be an XML file, and may include one or more settings different frompolicy metadata 846 (e.g., policy metadata 846 may include a setting notincluded in policy 856, policy metadata 846 may not include a settingincluded in policy 856, etc.). In an example, the policy 856 may be inthe form of a dictionary of policy names and values (e.g., key/valuespairs), which may be included in an XML or JSON file, for example.

With the settings of the policy 856 established, the managed application812 may be made available to users via the application store 834. Users,such as a user of the mobile device 810, can log on to the MRM system830 by, for example, submitting authentication requests 814 to theauthentication server 832 (e.g., via a MicroVPN tunnel and an accessgateway, as illustrated in FIG. 5) and receiving authenticationresponses 816. Authenticated users can view applications in theapplication store 834 and download them to their mobile devices. Forexample, the user of the mobile device 810 can download the managedapplication 812 from the application store 834.

In some variations, when the user downloads the managed application 812,the user may also receive the policy 856. The application 812, based onsoftware installed on the mobile device (e.g., the client agent asdescribed in connection with FIG. 6) can then be executed in such a wayas to constrain its operation on the mobile device 810 in accordancewith the policy 856.

Additionally, the managed application 812 may be specially designed oradapted for use with the MRM system 830 or enterprise. In other words,the managed application can be considered to be not an application thatgeneral users can download for their own personal activities (e.g., newsapps, Facebook app, etc.). In some examples, the managed application 812may be designed especially for the MRM system 830. In other examples,the application 812 may be a widely used application that is adaptedspecifically for use with the MRM system 830. For example, theapplication 812 may be injected with additional code that enables theapplication to conform with the framework of the MRM system 830. Suchcode can be compiled into the application 812 using an SDK.Alternatively, such code may be applied as a wrapper around thegeneral-use application. Such “wrapping” may provide one or moreinterfaces to adapt the application 812 specifically for use with theMRM system 830. In general, the additional code may, for example, divertapplication programming interface (API) calls from the application 812through the policy 856, such that the policy 856 is applied to controlthe behavior of the application 812 on the mobile device 810.

The application developer(s) 840 can periodically provide updatedversions of the policy metadata 846. Such updates can be used togenerate (via the administrative UI generator 836) an updated version ofpolicy 856. In some examples, the updated version of policy 856 can bepushed to the mobile device 810 to update the policy in use.

In some examples, the policy 856 residing on the mobile device 810 maybe refreshed periodically, or in response to certain events, such asstarting the application 812 on the mobile device 810, in response to aMicroVPN connection being created between the mobile device 810 and anaccess gateway of the MRM system 830, or in accordance with a setting ofpolicy 856 that directs mobile device 810 to request an update to thepolicy 856.

Having described certain embodiments, numerous alternative embodimentsor variations can be made. For example, the MRM system 830 has beenshown and described as a server accessible via a network, such as theInternet, and may be implemented with both a server portion and a clientportion that runs on the mobile device 810.

A policy may include any type of setting that an IT administrator orapplication developer may wish to implement for a managed application Inconnection with the numerous different settings that an IT administratoror application developer may wish to implement for a managedapplication, a few additional embodiments and variations will bedescribed in connection with FIGS. 9 through 11.

For example, temporal and geographic restrictions on data access may beuseful in some variations. Accordingly, an administrator may deploy apolicy that restricts the availability of the data (stored within thecontainer) to a specified time window and/or a geographic zone (e.g., asdetermined by a GPS chip of the mobile device) within which the mobiledevice must be currently located in order to access the data. Further,the policy can instruct deletion of data from the container or otherwisemake them unavailable when the specified time period expires or if themobile device is taken outside of the defined geographic zone. Oneexample method for configuring and providing a policy that includes asetting to delete data will be discussed below in connection with FIG.9.

As another example, it may be important to include settings thatconstrain or otherwise affect how the application is to be executed. Forexample, a policy may specify how data associated with the mobileapplication is to be stored by the mobile device and/or how file systemAPIs called by the application are to be redirected and/or how dataassociated with the mobile application is to be processed by the mobiledevice. One example method for configuring and providing a policy thatincludes one or more settings for managing execution of a managedapplication will be discussed below in connection with FIG. 10.

As another example, it may be important to include settings that arespecific to a user's role in the enterprise, such as what department heor she is employed within the enterprise (e.g., sales, engineering,etc.). It may also be important to include settings related toauthenticating a user when the mobile application is executing (e.g., asetting that specifies a token that can be used to authenticate a userwhen creating a MicroVPN connection specific to the managed applicationand that enables access by the mobile device/application to one or moreresources that are accessible via an access gateway). One example methodfor configuring and providing a policy that includes one or moresettings related to user authentication and/or user identification willbe discussed below in connection with FIG. 11.

FIG. 9 illustrates an example method for configuring and providing apolicy that includes a setting to delete data in accordance with variousaspects of the disclosure. Additionally, FIG. 9 illustrates a methodthat is performed by the processing circuitry of one or more computingdevices—such as an access gateway, another server under control by an ITadministrator of an enterprise, or another device acting as a controlpoint—when operating in accordance with various software constructs.

At step 901, the one or more computing device may receive initial policysettings or other data for inclusion in a policy. This step may proceedsimilar to step 701 of FIG. 7.

At step 903, the one or more computing devices may create a userinterface (UI) to display various portions of the initial policysettings. This step may proceed similar to step 703 of FIG. 7.

At step 905, the one or more computing device may receive input via theuser interface to set, change, and/or add to one or more settingsrelated to providing a selective wipe on a mobile device (e.g., aselective wipe setting). Aspects of this step may proceed similar tostep 705 of FIG. 7.

An IT administrator may provide input specifying one or more conditionsthat, when not met by the mobile device, instruct deletion of data orinstruct the mobile device to perform a selective wipe. For example, anIT administrator may provide input via the UI that specifies one or moretemporal or geographic restrictions for data associated with the managedapplication. Accordingly, one or more policy settings may be set,changed and/or added to restrict the availability of data to a specifiedtime window and/or a geographic zone (e.g., as determined by a GPS chipof the mobile device) within which the mobile device must be currentlylocated in order to access data.

An IT administrator may provide input specifying one or more conditionsthat, when met by the mobile device, instruct deletion of data orinstruct the mobile device to perform a selective wipe. For example, oneor more settings may be set, changed and/or added via the UI thatspecify one or more operating conditions of the mobile device. Suchoperating conditions may include, for example, an attempt to jailbreakthe mobile phone, install an application on a blacklist, a number offailed attempts to log-in to the mobile device, an attempt to uninstallthe managed application, switch from a managed application to anunmanaged application, switch from the managed application being storedin a managed partition of the mobile device to an unmanaged partition,receive a message specifying that the user no longer is employed by theenterprise, or otherwise use the mobile device in a disallowedconfiguration. Other operating conditions may include deleting dataaccording to a specified schedule (e.g., daily, weekly) or when a securecontainer has or exceeds a threshold amount of stored data. As thedevice is operated, software on the device may monitor for the one ormore operating conditions and when the operating conditions are met, mayperform a selective wipe or delete data from the mobile device inaccordance with the policy setting. Further details as to how the mobiledevice performs a selective wipe or deletes data is described below inconnection with step 909.

The IT administrator may also be able to set, change and/or add specificdata that is to be deleted when performing the selective wipe. Forexample, a specific data container's identifier or resource name may beincluded in the policy setting so that any data stored in the datacontainer (e.g., secure data container 528 of FIG. 5, the private datavault or shared data vault of FIG. 6, etc.). The policy setting may alsospecify that a user's mobile device is deleted of all enterpriseapplication(s) and corporate data when performing the selective wipebased on the policy setting.

At step 907, the one or more computing devices may determine to produceone or more published versions of the policy. This step may proceedsimilar to step 707 of FIG. 7.

At step 909, the one or more computing devices may produce one or morepolicy files for the managed application that include the selective wipesetting. This step may proceed similar to step 709 of FIG. 7.

The policy file produced by this step can be used by the mobile deviceto enforce the selective wipe settings. Accordingly, the policy cancause the mobile device or application to perform various actions basedon any selective wipe setting included in the policy file. Generally,any of the above (or other) conditions described above in connectionwith step 905 may form the basis for actions that the mobile device orapplication is caused to perform.

For example, if the mobile device does not meet the conditions of aselective wipe setting (or does meet conditions, depending on what typeof constraint the setting applies), the mobile device may, in response,perform a selective wipe as defined by the selective wipe setting.

As one example, a selective wipe may be performed by the mobile deviceas follows. The mobile device may begin by monitoring the operatingconditions of the mobile device (e.g., monitor for when the userdiscontinues employment, violates a corporate policy such as if theyjailbreak their device or otherwise use it in a disallowedconfiguration, or the like). Based on any selective wipe settingincluded in the policy and the monitored conditions, the mobile devicemay determine to perform a selective wipe of data. For example, if aselective wipe setting specifies a number of failed attempts that resultin performance of a selective wipe and the mobile device detects asufficient number of consecutive failed attempts to enter a validpasscode (e.g., 5 or 10), the mobile device may determine to perform aselective wipe.

Generally, any of the above (or other) conditions described above inconnection with step 907 may form the basis of the determination of whenthe mobile device performs a selective wipe. To enforce the policy, themobile device may compare the monitored conditions to one or morepolicies and if the conditions match a condition specified in the policythat commands a selective wipe, the mobile device may determine toperform a selective wipe.

In some embodiments, the mobile device may perform a check to determinewhether it has the most up to date policies that form a basis forperforming the selective wipe. For example, in some instances, themobile device may be performing a polling mechanism in a backgroundthread that periodically polls for updates to the policies installed onthe mobile device. In others, the mobile device may, prior to performingthe selective wipe, send a message to the access gateway that indicatesa selective wipe is about to be performed. In addition to indicatingthat the selective wipe is about to be performed, the message mayinclude an indication of the version number of the policy that formedthe basis for determining to perform the selective wipe. Responsive toreceiving the message, the access gateway may determine whether themobile device has the most-up-to date policy settings (e.g., determinewhether the policy should be updated or not) and, based on thedetermination, may respond with an acknowledgement that indicates themobile device has the most up-to-date policy settings or respond with anupdate to the policy. After receiving the message or update, the mobiledevice may proceed with performing the selective wipe or re-determinewhether the selective wipe should be performed based on the updatedpolicy.

The mobile device may continue the selective wipe process by, forexample, determining one or more secure containers for the selectivewipe. For example, the mobile device may determine which securecontainers contain the data of the one or more managed applications.This determination may be based on information specified by the policy.

After determining to perform the selective wipe and determining whichcontainers to delete from, the mobile device may delete or otherwisemake inaccessible the data of the one or more secure containers inaccordance with the policy. For example, a container may be configuredto allow the client agent or mobile device to read from, write to,and/or delete information from the container's file system. Deletingdata from the container can include deleting actual data stored in thecontainer, deleting pointers to data stored in the container, deletingencryption keys used to decrypt data stored in the container, and thelike. The container can enable some or all of the enterprise data storedin its file system to be deleted without modifying other data stored onthe mobile device outside of the container.

After performing the selective wipe, the mobile device may transmit aselective wipe acknowledgement to the enterprise. Such anacknowledgement may provide an indication to the enterprise that theselective wipe was successful. The acknowledgement may include a listingof applications and/or listing of secure containers that wereaffected/deleted by the selective wipe. The acknowledgement may alsoinclude a version number of the policy that included the selective wipesettings so that a computing device (e.g., the access gateway) canconfirm that the most up-to-date version of the selective wipe settingswere used. Upon receipt, the enterprise (e.g., access gateway) mayupdate its stored records accordingly.

At step 911, the one or more computing devices may provide the managedapplication and the policy file to be available for download by one ormore mobile devices. This step may proceed similar to step 711 of FIG.7.

FIG. 10 illustrates an example method for configuring and providing apolicy that includes one or more settings related to applicationmanagement of a managed application. Additionally, FIG. 10 illustrates amethod that is performed by the processing circuitry of one or morecomputing devices—such as an access gateway, another server undercontrol by an IT administrator of an enterprise, or another deviceacting as a control point—when operating in accordance with varioussoftware constructs.

At step 1001, the one or more computing device may receive initialpolicy settings or other data for inclusion in a policy. This step mayproceed similar to step 701 of FIG. 7.

At step 1003, the one or more computing devices may create a userinterface (UI) to display various portions of the initial policysettings. This step may proceed similar to step 703 of FIG. 7.

At step 1005, the one or more computing device may receive input via theuser interface to set, change, and/or add one or more settings relatedto application management of a managed application (e.g., an applicationmanagement setting). Aspects of this step may proceed similar to step705 of FIG. 7.

In some arrangements, the UI administrator may provide input to set,change, or add a setting that specifies how data associated with themobile application is to be stored by the mobile device and/or how filesystem APIs called by the application are to be redirected and/or howdata associated with the mobile application is to be processed by themobile device.

For example, the IT administrator may assign one or more securecontainers to the mobile application. Accordingly, the policy mayinclude one or more identifiers or resource names for the assignedsecure container(s).

As another example, in some instances, the mobile device may havepreviously used a different application prior to using the managedapplication (e.g., a previous corporate e-mail application) and theprevious application may not have enforced similar security settingsthat will be applied to the managed application (e.g., the previouscorporate e-mail application did not encrypt the data of the inbox orthe like). Accordingly, one or more application management settings maybe included in the policy so that legacy data will be processed when theapplication is configured in order to provide the user with access tothe legacy data in accordance with the different security protocolsbeing applied to the managed application.

An IT administrator may configure the policy so that, for example, itincludes a location of the legacy data is defined within the policyand/or includes an indication that the mobile device is to transferlegacy data for the managed application when configuring theapplication. The policy may also define an amount of legacy data to moveto the secure containers (e.g., a maximum amount of raw data, a numberof days of e-mails, all data, etc.). In some arrangements, the legacydata may be stored remotely, such as by an enterprise resource.

The IT administrator may also provide input that specifies encryptionand/or decryption keys for use when a mobile device or application wantsto read, write or otherwise access a secure container on the mobiledevice when the managed application is running. Such a policy may link aspecified encryption/decryption key to one or more secure containers byspecifying one or more secure container identifiers or resource names.For example, encryption or decryption keys may be assigned based on atuple of user, device, and application or application group, and thepolicy may include information identifying the tuple (e.g., anidentifier of the user, identifier of the mobile device, and identifierof the application or application group).

The IT administrator may also provide input that specifies how and/orhow often the encryption and decryption keys should be updated orrefreshed. For example, the setting may include a time to live for eachkey so that when the time expires, the mobile device must retrieve newkeys via the access gateway. In some arrangements, such settings mayalso specify that the new keys are retrieved via an application specificVPN, such as a MicroVPN tunnel.

The IT administrator may also provide input that specifies whichapplication group the managed application belongs to. Such anapplication management setting may include an identifier or resourcename for a shared data vault that is accessible by other members of theapplication group.

The IT administrator may also provide input that specifies one or moresecure data container that read or write operations from the managedapplication are to be redirected to when the mobile device executed themanaged application. In some arrangements, one of the secure datacontainers may be a private secured data container that is accessible toonly the managed application (e.g., the private app data vault of FIG.6). In others, one or more of the secure data containers may be a shareddata container (e.g., shared data vault of FIG. 6) that, for example, isaccessible to applications of the same application group.

At step 1007, the one or more computing devices may determine to produceone or more published versions of the policy. This step may proceedsimilar to step 707 of FIG. 7.

At step 1009, the one or more computing devices may produce one or morepolicy files for the managed application that include the applicationmanagement setting(s). This step may proceed similar to step 709 of FIG.7.

The policy file produced by this step can be used by the mobile deviceto enforce the application management settings. Accordingly, the policycan cause the mobile device or application to perform various actionsbased on any application management setting included in the policy file.Generally, any of the above (or other) conditions described above inconnection with step 1005 may form the basis for actions that the mobiledevice or application is caused to perform.

For example, when the mobile device configures the managed application,the mobile device may also configure one or more secure containers inaccordance with the policy file. Based on the policy, the mobile devicemay determine whether the assigned containers have been properly createdand configured on the mobile device. If a container does not alreadyexist, a new empty vault is initialized, including a file system for thecontainer (e.g., empty directory tree). An access manager for thecontainer may also be configured. In some embodiments, a securecontainer can be a logical interface into which read or write operationsare redirected and in which data is in an encrypted form. The accessmanager of a secure container may govern access to the file system byapplications and other components of the mobile device.

A software component, such as the client agent of the mobile device, mayalso be configured based on the policy. For example, an interceptionlayer may also be configured to be aware of any of the secure containersspecified by the policy. To configure the interception layer, it may beconfigured with information linking the identifiers or resourceidentifiers for the secure containers to one or more API calls that willbe issued by the application during execution and may be configured withthe locations of the keys that will be used when encrypting/decryptingdata to/from the application. In such a way, the interception layer mayintercept such calls when the application is executing and redirect thecalls to the appropriate secure container in accordance with the policyand, in some variations, without the application being aware of theinterception.

If the policy specifies that legacy data for the managed application isto be configured for the application, the mobile device may perform suchconfiguring of the legacy data accordingly. For example, the mobiledevice may retrieve, from the location where the legacy data is stored,and/or an amount of data in accordance with the policy. The mobiledevice may then encrypt the data in accordance with the policy (e.g.,using the encryption protocols specified by the policy and using thekeys specified by the policies). Some data may be encrypted usingdifferent keys based on which of the one or more secure containers theywill be stored into. After encrypting the legacy data, the mobile devicemay store the now-encrypted legacy data into the specified securecontainer (as determined by the policy). In some instances, the policymay specify that some data is to be stored in one container (e.g., aprivate container), while other data is to be stored in a differentcontainer (e.g., a shared container). Accordingly, the data may bestored into the appropriate containers in their encrypted form. Suchstorage may be performed by updating or creating references to thelocation of the encrypted data in the secure container's file system. Insome instances, after successfully processing the legacy data, anylegacy data that remains on the mobile device in its unencrypted formmay be deleted from the mobile device (such deletion may also bespecified by the policy).

At step 1011, the one or more computing devices may provide the managedapplication and the policy file to be available for download by one ormore mobile devices. This step may proceed similar to step 711 of FIG.7.

FIG. 11 illustrates an example method for configuring and providing apolicy that includes one or more settings related to user authenticationand/or user identification in accordance with various aspects describedherein. Additionally, FIG. 11 illustrates a method that is performed bythe processing circuitry of one or more computing devices—such as anaccess gateway, another server under control by an IT administrator ofan enterprise, or another device acting as a control point—whenoperating in accordance with various software constructs.

At step 1101, the one or more computing device may receive initialpolicy settings or other data for inclusion in a policy. This step mayproceed similar to step 701 of FIG. 7.

At step 1103, the one or more computing devices may create a userinterface (UI) to display various portions of the initial policysettings. This step may proceed similar to step 703 of FIG. 7.

At step 1105, the one or more computing device may receive input via theuser interface to set, change, and/or add a setting related to userauthentication or user identification (e.g., a user authorizationsetting or a user identification setting). In some arrangements, such asetting may provide a condition for authorizing or identifying a user inconnection with providing the access to one or more resources that areaccessible through an access gateway. Aspects of this step may proceedsimilar to step 705 of FIG. 7.

In some arrangements, an IT administrator may set, change and/or add asetting that specifies (or includes) a ticket or token (these terms willbe used interchangeably herein). Such tokens can be used by the mobiledevice in order to authenticate the user in a transparent manner. Thatis, one or more tickets are provided to the mobile device from theenterprise in an effort to avoid burdening the user to re-authenticate.When attempting to access an enterprise resource or initiating a secureconnection to the enterprise resource, the mobile device may provide theticket to the access gateway instead of reauthenticating (e.g., insteadof requiring the user to input or otherwise provide his or hercredentials, such as a username and/or password).

Such tickets, however, may expire and the IT administrator may specifythe expiration time or expirations conditions of the ticket. If suchtickets expire, operations that required tickets instead now requirethat the user re-authenticate. In some variations, a ticket may beone-time use and/or time-based, and impose constraints and/or privilegesto the application or user when accessing an enterprise resource. Forexample, a ticket may be specified as valid for a two-week period, orsome other shorter or longer time period as the enterprise operatorwishes (e.g., provide short-lived or longer-lived access). In somearrangements, access control is structured so that the level of securitydiminishes over time. For instance, some applications which should havehigh security may be provided tickets that expire more quickly (e.g.,after a predefined amount of time such as an hour, 15 minutes, etc.).Other tickets associated with applications of lower security may expireat a later time (e.g., after a later predefined amount of time such as aday, etc.). Other ticket-based techniques for imposing different levelsof security based on time or other measure (e.g., number of logins) aresuitable for use as well.

As one example of a ticket's use, a ticket may be usable to provideauthentication in connection with creating a VPN tunnel to enterpriseresources. For example, a ticket may include data or be otherwiseconfigured to authenticate a user, mobile device or application that isattempting to create a VPN tunnel to an enterprise resource that isaccessible through an access gateway, such as a MicroVPN tunnel or othertype of application-specific VPN tunnel.

The IT administrator may also provide input via the UI that specifieshow a user is to log-on to the MRM system. For example, the policy mayspecify that the user can use single-sign on functionality forauthentication with the access gateway and the conditions with which theuser can continue using single sign on functionality (e.g., single signon within particular geographic or mobile device location constraints,within particular time windows, constraints requiring an install of aparticular application on the mobile device, or the like).

As discussed above, when a user executes a managed application on themobile device, the user is typically challenged to authenticate theircorporate identity along with passwords and other factors as dictated bycorporate policy. The policy may specify the constraints on the passwordand/or specify the types of identification information that is to beincluded when requesting to authenticate (e.g., authenticate with apassword, username and mobile device identifier).

The policy may also specify (or include) one or more certificates thatcan be used to respond to certificate challenges that are received bythe mobile device.

The IT administrator may also provide input via the UI to create apolicy that is assigned to the user's role within the enterprise orspecific to the application's assigned application group. In such a waya single managed application may be associated with multiple policies,with each policy being assigned to a different user role (e.g., onepolicy for a sales employee; a different policy for a designer, etc.) orapplication group (e.g., a managed application may be assigned tomultiple application groups where each provides various constraints orbenefits to member applications, such as shared access to data stored indata containers, or the like, and each of the multiple applicationgroups corresponds to a different user role).

A policy may also be assigned to a group of applications. The group ofapplications could be, for example, a grouping of applications thatapply to a particular industry (e.g., the policy is assigned to a groupof applications that are related to the healthcare industry), apply to aparticular organization (e.g., the policy is assigned to a group ofapplications that were created by the same application developer, or areprovided by the same enterprise), and the like. The UI may be configuredto allow the IT administrator to provide input to create suchassignments.

At step 1107, the one or more computing devices may determine to produceone or more published versions of the policy. This step may proceedsimilar to step 707 of FIG. 7.

At step 1109, the one or more computing devices may produce one or morepolicy files for the managed application that include the userauthentication or user identification setting(s). This step may proceedsimilar to step 709 of FIG. 7.

The policy file produced by this step can be used by the mobile deviceto enforce the user authentication or user identification settings.Accordingly, the policy can cause the mobile device or application toperform various actions based on any user authentication or useridentification setting included in the policy file. Generally, any ofthe above (or other) conditions described above in connection with step1105 may form the basis for actions that the mobile device orapplication is caused to perform.

For example, a ticket specified by the policy may be first loaded intothe mobile device when the policy is downloaded to the mobile device.The mobile device may transmit a message including the ticket whenattempting to create an application-specific VPN tunnel. If suchtoken/ticket has expired, then the user may be asked to proceed througha full authentication process again before allowing VPN access. If theticket is not expired, the information included in the ticket may beused by a computing device (e.g., access gateway) to determine that theticket is valid and the user is allowed to access resources that areaccessible via the access gateway. After using the ticket toauthenticate the user, a VPN tunnel between the access gateway andmobile device may be constructed/initialized that enables the mobiledevice with access to at least one resource. The VPN tunnel may be anapplication specific VPN, such as a MicroVPN.

Use of the user authorization or user identification settings may, insome embodiments, cause the mobile device to be able perform variousactions without the application and/or the user being aware of theauthorization or that the user identification was provided to theenterprise. For example, the creation of the application specific VPNtunnel may be done without user interaction and without the user'sknowledge that the application specific VPN tunnel has beencreated/established. As another example, certificates specified by thepolicy may be provided without the application or user being aware thatsuch information was provided. As yet another example, user log-ins,passwords, or other identifying information may be provided to theenterprise without the user or application being aware that suchinformation was provided.

At step 1111, the one or more computing devices may provide the managedapplication and the policy file to be available for download by one ormore mobile devices. This step may proceed similar to step 711 of FIG.7.

Although the subject matter has been described in language specific tostructural features and/or methodological acts, it is to be understoodthat the subject matter defined in any claim is not necessarily limitedto the specific features or acts described above. Rather, the specificfeatures and acts described above are described as some exampleimplementations of the following claims.

We claim:
 1. A method, comprising: displaying, by one or more computingdevices, a user interface that displays one or more policy settings fora managed application that is to be made available for download to amobile device, wherein each of the one or more policy settings providesa constraint to be enforced by the mobile device prior to the managedapplication being provided access to at least one resource that isaccessible through an access gateway; receiving input via the userinterface that modifies the one or more policy settings, resulting inone or more modified policy settings; producing a policy file for themanaged application that includes the one or more modified policysettings; and providing the policy file such that the policy isavailable for download to the mobile device.
 2. The method of claim 1,wherein the policy file is an Extensible Markup Language (XML) file or aJavaScript Object Notation (JSON) file, and wherein the policy fileincludes one or more key/value pairs organized as a dictionary, whereineach key/value pair of the one or more key/value pairs corresponds toone of the one or more modified policy settings.
 3. The method of claim1, wherein each of the one or more modified policy settings includes asetting group or category identifier; a setting name; a setting type; arange of possible setting values; a default setting value; a settingfriendly name string; a setting unit display string; and a help textstring.
 4. The method of claim 1, further comprising: receiving amanaged application from an application developer; receiving initialpolicy settings from the application developer, wherein the initialpolicy settings include the one or more policy settings; and providingthe managed application such that the managed application is availablefor download to the mobile device.
 5. The method of claim 4, wherein theinput received via the user interface is from user, and whereinproducing the policy file is responsive to an acceptance of the one ormore policy settings by the user.
 6. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising: receiving additional input specifying one or more additionalpolicy settings; producing an additional policy file for the managedapplication that includes the one or more additional policy settings,wherein the additional policy file is assigned to a first user role; andproviding said additional policy file for download in accordance with arequesting user that is assigned the first user role; wherein the policyfile is assigned to a second user role different from the first userrole.
 7. The method of claim 1, wherein the providing the policy fileincludes publishing the policy file to an application store that alsopublishes the managed application.
 8. The method of claim 1, whereinproviding the policy file includes pushing the policy file to the mobiledevice based on the mobile device being registered with a push service.9. An apparatus, comprising: at least one processor; and memory storingexecutable instructions configured to, when executed by the at least oneprocessor, cause the apparatus to: display a user interface thatdisplays one or more policy settings for a managed application that isto be made available for download to a mobile device, wherein each ofthe one or more policy settings provides a constraint to be enforced bythe mobile device prior to the managed application being provided accessto at least one resource that is accessible through an access gateway;receive input via the user interface that modifies the one or morepolicy settings, resulting in one or more modified policy settings;produce a policy file for the managed application that includes the oneor more modified policy settings; and provide the policy file such thatthe policy is available for download to the mobile device.
 10. Theapparatus of claim 9, wherein the policy file is an Extensible MarkupLanguage (XML) file or a JavaScript Object Notation (JSON) file, andwherein the policy file includes one or more key/value pairs organizedas a dictionary, wherein each key/value pair of the one or morekey/value pairs corresponds to one of the one or more modified policysettings.
 11. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein each of the one or moremodified policy settings includes a setting group or categoryidentifier; a setting name; a setting type; a range of possible settingvalues; a default setting value; a setting friendly name string; asetting unit display string; and a help text string.
 12. The apparatusof claim 9, wherein the executable instructions are configured to, whenexecuted by the at least one processor, further cause the apparatus to:receive a managed application from an application developer; receiveinitial policy settings from the application developer, wherein theinitial policy settings include the one or more policy settings; andprovide the managed application such that the managed application isavailable for download to the mobile device.
 13. The apparatus of claim12, wherein the input received via the user interface is from a user,and wherein producing the policy file is responsive to an acceptance ofthe one or more policy settings by the user.
 14. The apparatus of claim9, wherein the executable instructions are configured to, when executedby the at least one processor, further cause the apparatus to: receiveadditional input specifying one or more additional policy settings;produce an additional policy file for the managed application thatincludes the one or more additional policy settings, wherein theadditional policy file is assigned to a first user role; and providesaid additional policy file for download in accordance with a requestinguser that is assigned the first user role; wherein the policy file isassigned to a second user role different from the first user role. 15.The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the providing the policy file includespublishing the policy file to an application store that also publishesthe managed application.
 16. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein providingthe policy file includes pushing the policy file to the mobile devicebased on the mobile device being registered with a push service.
 17. Oneor more non-transitory computer-readable media storing instructionsconfigured to, when executed, cause at least one computing device to:display a user interface that displays one or more policy settings for amanaged application that is to be made available for download to amobile device, wherein each of the one or more policy settings providesa constraint to be enforced by the mobile device prior to the managedapplication being provided access to at least one resource that isaccessible through an access gateway; receive input via the userinterface that modifies the one or more policy settings, resulting inone or more modified policy settings; produce a policy file for themanaged application that includes the one or more modified policysettings; and provide the policy file such that the policy is availablefor download to the mobile device.
 18. The one or more non-transitorycomputer-readable media of claim 17, wherein the policy file is anExtensible Markup Language (XML) file or a JavaScript Object Notation(JSON) file, and wherein the policy file includes one or more key/valuepairs organized as a dictionary, wherein each key/value pair of the oneor more key/value pairs corresponds to one of the one or more modifiedpolicy settings.
 19. The one or more non-transitory computer-readablemedia of claim 17, wherein each of the one or more modified policysettings includes a setting group or category identifier; a settingname; a setting type; a range of possible setting values; a defaultsetting value; a setting friendly name string; a setting unit displaystring; and a help text string.
 20. The one or more non-transitorycomputer-readable media of claim 17, wherein the instructions areconfigured to, when executed, further cause said at least one computingdevice to: receive additional input specifying one or more additionalpolicy settings; produce an additional policy file for the managedapplication that includes the one or more additional policy settings,wherein the additional policy file is assigned to a first user role; andprovide said additional policy file for download in accordance with arequesting user that is assigned the first user role; wherein the policyfile is assigned to a second user role different from the first userrole.